Portrait   of   a    Lady,  painted   by    Ravesteyn  (1580—1665).        Taken  from  a  photograph  by  Hanfstaengl. 
The  ruff  is   trimmed   with   the  elaborate  Guipure  Point   Qotico  of  the  period. 


A -HISTORY   OF 

HAND-MADE  LACE 


DEALING    WITH     THE    ORIGIN    OF     LACE,    THE    GROWTH     OF    THE 

GREAT  LACE  CENTRES,  THE   MODE  OF   MANUFACTURE,  THE 

METHODS    OF    DISTINGUISHING     AND     THE     CARE 

OF  VARIOUS    KINDS   OF    LACE. 


MRS.  F.  NEVILL  JACKSON, 


WITH    SUPPLEMENTARY    INFORMATION    BY 


ERNESTO      JESURUM. 


ILLUSTRATED 

WITH    19    PLATES,    AND    OVER    2OO    ENGRAVINGS    OF    LACE    AND     THE     FASHION 
OF    WEARING    IT   AS    SHOWN    IN    CONTEMPORARY    PORTRAITS. 


LONDON:   L.    UPCOTT    GILL,    170,    STRAND,    W.C. 

NEW    YORK:    CHARLES    SCRIBNER'S    SONS,    153-157,    FIFTH    AVENUE. 

I QOO. 


"THERE  is  STILL  SOME  DISTINCTION  BETWEEN  MACHINE-MADE  AND  HAND-MADE 
LACE.  I  WILL  SUPPOSE  THAT  DISTINCTION  so  FAR  DONE  AWAY  WITH  THAT,  A 
PATTERN  ONCE  INVENTED,  YOU  CAN  SPIN  LACE  AS  FAST  AS  THEY  NOW  DO  THREAD. 
EVERYBODY  THEN  MIGHT  WEAR  NOT  ONLY  LACE  COLLARS,  BUT  LACE  GOWNS. 
DO  YOU  THINK  THAT,  WHEN  EVERYBODY  COULD  WEAR  THEM,  EVERYBODY 
WOULD  BE  PROUD  OF  WEARING  THEM  ?  A  SPIDER  MAY  PERHAPS  BE  RATIONALLY 
PROUD  OF  HIS  OWN  COBWEB,  EVEN  THOUGH  ALL  THE  FIELDS  IN  THE  MORNING  ARE 
COVERED  WITH  THE  LIKE,  FOR  HE  MADE  IT  HIMSELF  ;  BUT  SUPPOSE  A  MACHINE  SPUN 

IT   FOR   HIM  ?    SUPPOSE   ALL    THE    GOSSAMER   WERE    NOTTINGHAM   MADE  .'      IF   YOU   THINK 

OF  IT,  YOU  WILL  FIND  THE  WHOLE  VALUE  OF  LACE  AS  A  POSSESSION  DEPENDS  ON 
THE  FACT  OF  ITS  HAVING  A  BEAUTY  WHICH  HAS  BEEN  THE  REWARD  OF  INDUSTRY 
AND  ATTENTION.  THAT  THE  THING  IS  ITSELF  A  PRICE — A  THING  EVERYBODY  CANNOT 
HAVE.  THAT  IT  PROVES,  BY  THE  LOOK  OF  IT,  THE  ABILITY  OF  THE  MAKER  ;  THAT  IT 
PROVES,  BY  THE  RARITY  OF  IT,  THE  DIGNITY  OF  ITS  WEARER — EITHER  THAT  SHE  HAS 
BEEN  SO  INDUSTRIOUS  AS  TO  SAVE  MONEY,  WHICH  CAN  BUY,  SAY,  A  PIECE  OF 
JEWELLERY,  OF  GOLD  TISSUE,  OR  OF  FINE  LACE — OR  ELSE  THAT  SHE  IS  A  NOBLE 
PERSON,  TO  WHOM  HER  NEIGHBOURS  CONCEDE  AS  AN  HONOUR  THE  PRIVILEGE  OF 
WEARING  FINER  DRESS  THAN  THEY.  IF  THEY  ALL  CHOOSE  TO  HAVE  LACE  TOO — IF 
IT  CEASES  TO  BE  A  PRICE,  IT  BECOMES,  DOES  IT  NOT,  ONLY  A  COBWEB  1  THE  REAL 
GOOD  OF  A  PIECE  OF  LACE,  THEN,  YOU  WILL  FIND,  IS  THAT  11  SHOULD  SHOW  FIRST, 
THAT  THE  DESIGNER  OF  IT  HAD  A  PRETTY  FANCY  ;  NEXT,  THAT  THE  MAKER  OF  IT 
HAD  FINE  FINGERS  ;  LASTLY,  THAT  THE  WEARER  OF  IT  HAS  WORTHINESS  OR  DIGNITY 
ENOUGH  TO  OBTAIN  WHAT  IT  IS  DIFFICULT  TO  OBTAIN,  AND  COMMON  SENSE  ENOUGH 
NOT  TO  WEAR  IT  ON  ALL  OCCASIONS.  " 

RUSKIN. 


DEDICATED 

BY  SPECIAL   PERMISSION 
TO 

her  Royal   highness  Princess  Christian, 

WHOSE  FELLOW-FEELING  WITH  WOMEN  WORKERS 

HAS  ALWAYS  SHOWN  ITSELF 
IN  HER  KINDLY  INTEREST  AND  TENDER  SYMPATHY 

WITH  WOMEN'S  WORK, 
WHETHER  OF  BRAIN  OR  HAND. 


228424 


PREFACE. 


THE  special  object  in  writing  this  History  of  Hand-made  Lace  has  been  to 
sift  and  condense  all  available  information  in  order  to  classify  antique 
and  modern  lace  specimens  with  regard  to  their  origin,  period,  and  mode 
of  manufacture,  as  well  as  to  trace  the  History  of  the  rise  and  growth  of  the 
great  lace  centres. 

For  a  complete  list  of  Works  on  Lace-making  we  must  refer  to  our  chapter 
on  the  Literature  of  Lace  ;  we  are  specially  indebted  to  Mrs.  Bury  Palliser's 
"History  of  Lace";  "The  Lace  Catalogue"  of  South  Kensington  Museum, 
revised  by  Alan  S.  Cole  ;  Lady  Layard's  translation  of  "  The  Technical  History 
of  Venetian  and  Burano  Laces  "  ;  and  Felkin's  "  Machine- wrought  Lace." 

Our  i hanks  are  due  to  Signer  Giuseppe  Aldo  Randegger  for  the  "Ballade 
a  Toile,"  written  expressly  for  this  work.  In  order  to  preserve  to  posterity  the 
almost  extinct  song  of  the  lace-makers,  which  had  its  origin  in  the  ateliers  of 
the  sixteenth  century,  he  visited  Venice,  where  a  few  of  the  old  workers  still 
retain  the  once  universal  custom  of  singing  appropriate  songs  as  they  ply  the 
needle  or  twist  the  bobbins,  and,  after  listening  to  the  harmonies,  he  set  the 
graceful  words  of  Signer  Eugenie  Randegger  to  music.  We  wish  to  express  our 
thanks  to  Signer  Ernesto  Jesurum  for  much  valuable  information  regarding  the 
hand-made  laces  of  the  present  day,  and  for  placing  at  our  disposal  a  large 
number  of  specimens  of  antique  lace,  which  rendered  our  systematic  pictorial 
classification  possible  ;  also  to  the  Council  of  the  South  Kensington  Museum,  and 
to  Mr.  A.  F.  Kendrick  personally,  together  with  Mr.  Alfred  Whitman,  of  the 
Print  Department  at  the  British  Museum,  for  their  courtesy  and  assistance. 

EMILY  JACKSON. 
July,  1900. 


LIST   OF    PLATES. 


PORTRAIT  OF  A  LADY,  PAINTED  BY  RAVESTEYN  (1580-1665)    ...         ...     Frontispiece 

PORTRAIT  OF  QUEEN  ELIZABETH,  IN  RUFF  TRIMMED  WITH  THE  MOST 

ELABORATE  THREAD  GUIPURE  OF  THE  PERIOD   ...         ...      facing  page       12 

BOBBIN-MADE  BRUSSELS  LACE  FLOUNCE;  LATE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY  ...  23 
POINT  DE  FRANCE,  SHOWING  THE  VENETIAN  INFLUENCE;  SEVENTEENTH 

CENTURY  ...          ...          ...          ...          ...          ...          ...          ...         ...       32 

PORTRAIT  OF  MADEMOISELLE  DE  BEAUJOLAS,  BY  NATTIER  (1685-1766)  ...  37 
PORTRAIT  OF  QUEEN  VICTORIA,  TAKEN  AT  THE  TIME  OF  HER  MAJESTY'S 

JUBILEE,  1887...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...       46 

IRISH  NEEDLE-POINT  LACE  HEAD-DRESS  WITH  LAPPETS  ;  NINETEENTH 

CENTURY  ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...       54 

PORTRAIT  OF  POPE  CLEMENT  XIII.  REZZONICUS  (1693-1769),  SHOWING 

POINT  DE  BURANO  LACE  WORN  ON  DRESS      — ...         ...         ...         ...       56 

FAN-LEAF  OF  NEEDLE-POINT  LACE  MADE  FOR  H.R.H.  PRINCESS  MAUD  OF 

WALES  ON  THE  OCCASION  OF  HER  MARRIAGE  IN  1896  63 

FAN-LEAF  OF  WHITE  NEEDLE-POINT  LACE  (POINT  D'ALENCON)  ;  NINETEENTH 

CENTURY;  BELONGING  TO  THE  EMPRESS  EUGENIE         ...         ...         ...       66 

PORTRAIT  OF  MARIE  ANTOINETTE  (1755-1793)     ...         ...         ...         ...         ...       76 

LACE-TRIMMED  CHRISTENING  SUITS  IN  USE  UNTIL  THE  CLOSE  OF  THE 

EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY          ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...       82 

LAPPET  OF  NEEDLE-POINT  LACE  (POINT 'o'ALEN9ON) ;  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY     108 
LAPPET  OF  BELGIAN  BOBBIN  LACE;    EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY...         ...         ...     118 

WEDDING  VEIL  OF  BOBBIN  MADE  BRUSSELS  (BELGIAN)  LACE;  EIGHTEENTH 

CENTURY  ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...         ...     128 


x  LIST    OF    PLATES. 

PANEL  FOR  LINEN  CHAIR-BACK  OF  CUT  LINEN  AND  EMBROIDERY.  IRISH  ; 

NINETEENTH  CENTURY  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  facing  page  140 

PORTRAIT  OF  MME.  G.  DEN  DUBBELDE,  BY  B.  VAN  DER  HELST         ...          ...      155 

(i)  LAPPET  OF  MECHLIN  BOBBIN  LACE  ;  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY.  (2)  LAPPET 
(ONE  OF  A  PAIR)  OF  VALENCIENNES  BOBBIN  LACE;  EIGHTEENTH 
CENTURY  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  181 

LINEN  COLLAR,  WITH  BORDER  AND  BROAD  ENDS  OF  NEEDLE-POINT 
VENETIAN  LACE  (GROS  POINT  DE  VENISE,  PUNTO  TAGLIATO  A 
FOLIAMI)  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  2O4 


CONTENTS. 


CHAP.  PAGE 

I.  THE  EVOLUTION  OF  LACE     ...         ...          ...          ...  ...          ...  ! 

II.  ANECDOTAL  HISTORY  OF  MEDIEVAL  LACE            ...  ...         ...  I2 

III.  ANECDOTAL  HISTORY  OF  LACE  IN  THE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY  ...       23 

IV.  ANECDOTAL  HISTORY  OF  LACE  IN  THE  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY  ...       37 
V.  ANECDOTAL  HISTORY  OF  LACE  IN  THE  NINETEENTH  CENTURY  ...       46 

VI.  ECCLESIASTICAL  LACE             ...          ...          ...         ...  ...  c6 

VII.  LACE  FANS       ...          ...         ...          ...          ...          ...  ...          ...  ...       63 

VIII.  PEASANT  LACES           ...         ...         ...         ...         ...  ...         ...  ...       69 

IX.  THE  TRANSPORT  OF  LACE     ...          ...         ...          ...  ...          ...  ...       76 

X.  THE  CARE  OF  LACE   ...          ...          ...          ...          ...  g2 

XI.  THE  LITERATURE  OF  LACE  ...         ...         ...         ...  04 

A  DICTIONARY  OF  LACE          ...          ...          ...          ...  ...  1Oy 

GLOSSARY  RELATING  TO  HAND-MADE  LACE          ...  ...         ...  ...     207 

INDEX    ...          ...          ...          ...          ...          ...  ....  22i 


A  HISTORY 

OF 

HAND, 
MADE 
LACE. 


'•  L'Industria,"  from  a  painting  by  Paul  Veronese,  in  the  Doge's  Palace,  Venice.     Taken  from 
a  Photograph  by  Anderson,  Rome. 


O 


high  value  can 

The    work 

cares  need  not 

the  work  itself 


CHAPTER     I. 

THE  EVOLUTION  OF  LACE. 

all  the  industries  there  is  perhaps  none  so  valuable  as  that  of 
lace-making,  for  the  cost  of  tools  and  working  materials  is  so 
trifling  that  the  profit  is  derived  almost  entirely  from  the  manual 
labour  expended  upon  it,  and  the  scope  for  artistic  feeling  and 
individuality  in  the  taste  of  the  worker  is  so  great  that  a  very 
be  obtained  by  the  humblest  operator. 

is  not  beyond  the  strength  of  the  most  delicate  woman  ;  family 
be  neglected,  for  the  lace-maker  can  work  at  home  ;  and  lastly, 
necessitates  perfect  hygienic  conditions  and  personal  cleanliness. 


2  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

On  the  charm  of  lace,  as  beauty's  aid,  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  dwell  :  all 
acknowledge  the  graceful  and  softening  effect  of  filmy  ruffles  and  delicate  webs 
of  flax  thread.  Never  does  an  old  lady  look  so  charming  as  when  she  drapes  her 
head  and  shoulders  with  old  lace,  and  never  are  the  charms  of  youth  and  beauty 
so  apparent  as  when  enhanced  with  lace. 


Specimen  of  Ancient  Network,  the  forerunner  of  the  Lace  Ground  of  the 
present  day.     From  a  Roman  Cemetery  in  Middle  Egypt. 

It  is  the  one  costly  wear  which  never  vulgarises  ;  jewels  worn  without  judgment 
can  be  rendered  offensive  to  good  taste  in  their  too  apparent  glitter,  but  lace  in  its 
comparatively  quiet  richness  never  obtrudes  itself  and  is  recognised  in  its  true  worth 
and  beauty  only  by  those  whose  superior  taste  has  trained  them  to  see  its  value.  The 


Cor< 


EVOLUTION   OF  LACE.  3 

distinction  between  the  two  costliest  adornments  which 
have  ever  been  produced  is  a  subtle  one,  and  the  wearer 
of  artistic  hand-made  lace  is  marked  as  a  woman  of  taste 
which  raises  her  above  the  ordinary  level,  in  refinement 
of  judgment,  all  the  world  over. 

Lace  has  been  defined  as  the  name  generally  applied 
to  ornamented  open-work  of  threads  of  flax,  cotton,  silk, 
gold  or  silver,  and  occasionally  of  hair  or  aloe  fibre. 
Such  threads  may  be  either  looped,  plaited  or  twisted 
together  in  one  of  three  ways  :  — 

(i).     With  a  needle,  when   the  work  is  distinctively 

known  as  Needle  Point  Lace. 

(2).  With  bobbins,  when  the  work  is  known  as 
Bobbin  Lace,  though  sometimes  inaccu- 
rately described  as  Pillow  Lace.  Needle- 
point, Bobbin,  and  Knotted  Laces,  such  as 
Macrame,  are  all  supported  in  the  hands 
of  the  worker  on  a  pillow,  so  that  the  term 
Pillow  Lace  conveys  no  distinctive  mean- 
ing and  should  never  be  used  except  as  a 
general  term. 

(3).  By  machinery,  when  imitations  of  both  Needle- 
point and  Bobbin  Lace  patterns  are  pro- 
duced. 

The  difficulty  of  tracing  the  history  of  lace  is  vastly 
increased  by  the  fragility  of  the  specimens.  In  public 
and  private  collections  of  pictures,  sculpture,  or  pottery, 
a  continuity  of  the  story  is  possible  by  means  of  the 
examples  left  intact  by  the  ravages  of  time  ;  but  with 
lace  the  delicate  gold,  silver,  and  flax  threads  are  so 
perishable  that  only  very  few  examples  remain  to  show 
what  special  mode  was  employed  in  the  handicraft  at 
this  or  that  period.  Pictorial  art  is  a  rich  source  of  infor- 
mation when  that  point  is  arrived  at  in  the  history  of 
lace  when  portraits  show  the  variety  and  style  of  wear- 
ing the  fabric.  Sculpture  also  lends  its  aid  in  the  same 
way. 

Some  authors  have  stated  that  lace  originated  in  the   Where  were 
far  East  ;  but  if  this  be  the  case  it  is  strange  that  in  those  the  earliest 
lands  where  the  trades  and  customs  are  so  conservative 
that  one  may  see  made  to-day  what  was  made  centuries 
ago,  from  the  same  designs  and  by  identical  methods,  lace 
should   be   conspicuous   by  its  absence.      There  is  little 


x  !™     made    of  native  industry  of  lace-making  in  China,  perhaps  the  most 

Twisted  Threads,  from  .          J  ,     .. 

an  Ancient   Tomb  at  conservative  or  all  countries,  and  only  the  scantiest  trace 

ThebCS'  of  a  Past  lace  industry-     Lace  now  made  by  the  Celestial 


B  2 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Homer 
mentions 
nets  of  gold. 


The  lozenge 
pattern 
is  the  most 
ancient. 


has  been  taught  in  modern  mission  schools,  and  is  an  imita- 
tion of  the  Maltese  varieties  ;  in  Japan  it  is  the  same.  In 
Persia  no  lace  is  made,  though  open  work  in  drawn  thread 
work  is  occasionally  to  be  met  with.  At  Tinnevelli  and 
Travancore,  in  India,  lace  is  made  at  the  mission  schools, 
but  there  is  no  special  native  industry. 

Why,  if  the  Orientals  originated  lace,  should  they  cease 
to  make  it  when  Europe  began  ?  And  why,  moreover,  should 
so  few  traces  of  the  old  industry  remain  where  centuries  roll 
by  without  affecting  other  trades  ?  The  arguments  for  the 
theory  of  the  origin  of  lace  in  the  far  East  are,  we  think, 
inadequate.  It  is  in  the  West,  in  those  countries  contigu- 
ous to  Europe,  in  Asia  Minor,  that  the  earliest  forms  of  iace 
work  were  made. 

The  references  in  ancient  manuscripts  to  lace  or  net- 
work are  frequently  confounded  with  embroidery,  possibly 
because  the  two  kinds  of  needlework  were  so  often  used 
together,  and  translators  from  the  primitive  languages, 
Chaldaic,  Hebrew,  and  Arabic,  did  not  differentiate  between 
the  two  distinct  varieties  of  needlework  :  embroidery,  and 
network  or  lace. 

In  the  paintings  on  ancient  Egyptian  sarcophagi,  we 
see  figures  weaving  garments  of  fine  network,  such  as  are 
described  in  Isaiah  :  "  They  that  work  in  fine  flax  and  they 
that  weave  networks "  (xix.  9).  The  robes  of  state  of 
royal  personages  in  such  pictures  appear  to  be  of  network 
darned  round  the  hem  in  gold,  silver,  and  coloured  silks. 

Examples  of  elaborate  netting  have  been  found  in 
Egyptian  and  Graeco- Roman  tombs,  and  mummy  wrappings 
are  ornamented  with  drawn  work,  cut  work,  and  other  open 
ornamentation. 

Homer  mentions  veils  of  net  woven  of  gold.  Such 
expressions  cannot  possibly  be  considered  as  referring  to 
embroidery.  Reference  to  them  seems  to  establish  two 
points : — First,  that  network  of  fine  linen  interwoven  or 
embroidered  with  gold,  whether  for  the  ornamenting  of  wear- 
ing apparel  or  the  enrichment  of  hangings  (just  as  we  find 
darned  network  used  for  curtains  in  the  present  day)  were 
made  use  of  from  Biblical  times  ;  secondly,  that  lace  derived 
its  origin  from  netting,  and  not,  as  many  imagine,  from 
embroidery. 

On  the  opening  of  a  Scandinavian  barrow  near  Ware- 
ham,  in  Dorsetshire,  a  small  piece  of  gold  lace  was  brought 
to  light.  It  was  of  course  much  decayed.  Its  old  lozenge 
design,  however,  could  be  distinguished.  This  pattern, 
which  is  the  most  ancient  and  universal,  has  also  been  found 


i  A 


k  i 

I 


A  Tape  or  Braid  of 
Twisted  Threads, 
from  a  Tomb  at 
Akhmen,  Panopo- 
lis,  Upper  Egypt. 


EVOLUTION    OF    LACE. 


Saracenic  Drawn  Linen  Work,  the  earliest  form  of 
Open  Work  Ornamentation.  From  a  Tomb  in 
Egypt,  tenth  or  eleventh  century •&£!»  f\  D> 


depicted  on  pottery  as  trimming 
the  coats  of  the  ancient  Danes. 
The  borders  of  the  coat  are 
edged  with  a  network  pattern  of 
the  same  design  ;  possibly  the 
knowledge  of  the  handicraft  of 
gold  lace  making  had  been 
brought  to  Scandinavia  by  some 
captive  women  torn  from  their 
Southern  homes  by  the  Vikings, 
for  it  was  by  such  means  that 
nations  so  far  removed  from  the 
centres  of  civilization  were  often 
taught. 

A    fine   example   of  antique  gold    lace    was   discovered   in    the   coffin  of   St.   The  distinc- 

Cuthbert  in    Durham    Cathedral.     The    Saint  had   been    buried    in    his  cope  and  *ion  b<*™en 
.....  .......      lace  ana 

maniple,   which  were  very  beautifully  embroidered  ;  on   one  side  or  the  maniple  embroidery. 

the  gold  lace  was  stitched  and  showed  quite  separate  from  the  material  which  it 
ornamented,  but  on  which  it  had  not  been  originally  worked  as  embroidery. 

The  Circassian  and  Armenian  women  have  from  the  earliest  times  adorned  the 
fronts  and  necks  of  their  underlinen,  the  skirts  of  their  dresses,  and  the  veils  which 
are  worn  on  the  head,  with  a  net  interwoven  with  threads  of  gold,  silver,  or  of 
silk. 

The  Arabs  also  excelled  in  such  work,  and  the  Commerce  which  was  formerly 
carried  on  between  Italy  and  Arabia  is  a  matter  of  history  ;  we  are  therefore  justified 
in  conjecturing  that  the  Italian  word  ricamo,  which  signifies  embroidery,  is  no 
other  than  the  old  Arabic  word  rabnna,  and  that  the  other  Italian  word  trine,  or 
lace,  represents  the  Arabic  word  targe  the  evident  deduction  being  that  the  Arabs 
distinguished  between  the  two  species  of  needlework,  embroidery  and  lace,  and  gave 
to  each  its  distinctive  appellation. 

In  documents  of  the  thirteenth  and  fourteenth  centuries  the  word  "  fimboice  " 

is  used  in  writing  of 
fringe  and  lace,  and 
the  addition  of"  in 
gold,"  '•  in  silver," 
or  "  in  network"  is 
frequently  met  with ; 
if  it  had  been  in- 
tended to  speak  of 
embroidery  proper 
it  is  obvious  that, 
at  least  sometimes, 
mention  of  the 
material,  or  the 

Drawn  Linen  Work  with  Arabic  inscription,  from  a  Tomb  colour  of  the   mate- 

in  Upper  Egypt.  rial,  on   which   the 


HISTORY    OF     HAND-MADE    LACE 


Cut  linen 
•was  an 
early  form  of 
lace  work. 


embroidery  was  worked 
would  have  been  made,  as 
embroidery  in  gold,  on 
linen,  on  purple,  silk,  or 
some  other  variety. 

Anglo-Saxon  gentle- 
women were  extremely 
clever  in  embroidery  and 
its  kindred  ornamentations, 
and  many  accounts  are 
extant  of  richly  embroi- 
dered tunics  and  sarks 
worked  by  the  nuns,  whose 
lives  of  seclusion  gave 
them  ample  opportunity  for 
the  execution  of  intricate 
needlework. 

In  tracing  the  evolu- 
tion of  lace,  mention  must 
be  made  of  other  early 
forms  besides  that  of  darned 
network  and  veils.  The 
most  important  of  these 
was  the  cut  work,  which 
was  extensively  used  in  the 
sixteenth  century,  and  is 
known  to  have  existed  at 
a  much  earlier  period. 
The  commonest  use  made 
of  this  form  of  needlework 
was  for  the  ornamentation 
of  shirts  and  smocks. 

"These  shirtes,"  writes 
Philip  Stubbs  in  1583,  in 
the  '  Anatomic  of  Abuses,' 
"  are  wrought  throughout 
with  needlework  of  silke, 
and  such  like,  and  curiously 
stitched  with  open  seame, 
and  many  other  knacks 
besides,  more  than  I  can 
describe,  in  so  much,  I 
have  heard  of  shirtes  that 
have  cost  some  ten  shil- 
lynges,  some  twenty,  some 


EVOLUTION    OF    LACE. 


Band  of  Galloon  in  coloured  silk  and  gold  thread,  forerunner  of  the  Gold  Lace  of  the 
present  day.     From  an  ancient  Tomb  at  Akhmen,  Panopolis,  Upper  Egypt. 

forty,  some   five  pounds,    some  twenty  nobles,  and  (which   is   horrible  to   heare) 
some  ten  pound  apece." 

At  first  cut-work  was  used  only  for  ecclesiastical  purposes ;  and  until  the 
dissolution  of  the  monasteries,  the  art  of  making  it  was  looked  upon  as  a  secret 
belonging  to  the  Church.  The  Church  dignitaries  did  not  consider  it  derogatory  to 
design  patterns,  the  great  St.  Dunstan  himself  executing  several. 

The  transition  from  lace  of  gold,  silver  and  silken  threads  to  that  of  flax  was 
very  simple. 

In  the  works  of  Dante  and  others  we  read  that  the  early  simplicity  of  dress 
had  given  way  to  extravagance  and  luxury,  and  many  rich  people  impoverished 
themselves  by  purchasing  scarves,  sashes,  mantles,  coverlets,  cushions  of  gold 
brocade  embroidered  with  pearls  and  other  gems,  and  veils  and  trimmings  of 
lace  made  with  spun  gold,  of  immoderate  richness.  In  the  fourteenth  and 
fifteenth  centuries  gold  thread  was  subject  to  heavy  duties  and  severe  Sumptuary 
regulations,  so  much  so,  that  about  the  year  1460  the  lace-workers,  finding  the 
demand  for  their  work  so  much  diminished  that  the  production  of  gold  and  silver 
lace  was  no  longer  profitable  at  home,  many  of  them  emigrated,  taking  their 
industry  to  other  countries  ;  others  continued  their  work  in  Italy,  substituting 

ftax  threads  for  the  costly  gold 
and  silver. 

It  is  beyond  doubt  that 
the  designs  of  the  laces  made 
with  spun  gold  were  towards 
the  end  of  the  sixteenth 
century  reproduced  in  linen 
thread,  and  it  is  no  wonder 
that  when  the  increased 
facility  in  working  with  flax 
was  discovered,  and  beautiful 
and  ingenious  stitches  were 
introduced,  the  lighter  and 
cheaper  material  eventually 
remained  master  of  the  field. 

The  Sumptuary  laws  have 
in  every  lace-making  country 
had  such  an  important  influ- 

Example  of  Saracenic  Drawn  Linen,  the  earliest  form  Mnce     on      the      evolution      and 

of  Open  Work  Ornamentation.     From  a  Tomb  in  .    , 

Egypt,  tenth  or  eleventh  century  *^./{  .£>  development    of     lace,    that     it 


The  transi- 
tion from 
gold  and 
silver  lace  to 
that  of  flax 
thread. 


Sumptuary 
laws  have 
hindered  the 
lace-making 
industry. 


HISTORY    OF    HAND- MADE    LACE. 


Portion  of  a  Linen  Garment,  ornamented  with  Drawn  Work, 
over-sewn  and  embroidered  with  Kufic  inscriptions.  Sara- 
cenic, ninth  or  tenth  century  B*C.  f\  '<__j 

C 

is  impossible  to  sketch  the  history  of  lace  without  first  taking  a  cursory  glance  at 
some  of  the  edicts'  which  in  all  ages  have  retarded,  hampered,  and  occasionally 
threatened  to  altogether  extinguish  the  lace-making  industry. 

In  France  the  first  Sumptuary  law  is  dated  608.  It  was  made  by  Charles  the 
Great  for  the  regulation  of  high-priced  cloth  used  for  the  dress  of  the  period. 
Unlike  many  of  his  predecessors,  the  King  himself  showed  an  example  of  extreme 
sirpplicjty  while  endeavouring  to  restrain  luxury  in  others. 

Louis  le  Debonnaire,  Philip  Augustus,  and  Louis  VIII.,  also  tried  to  restrain 
by  edict  the  luxury  which  increased  with  the  development  of  the  industries.  Philip 


Christian  Coptic  example  of  Drawn  Linen,  the  flax  warps  forming'  a  lace-like  ground  for 
needlework  stitches.     Sixth  century.   ^ 


ErOLL'TlON    or    LACE. 


Augustus  made  himself  ridiculous  by  the  exactness  of  his  orders.  He  not  only 
legislated  with  regard  to  dress  but  also  to  attendants,  and  even  the  number  of 
the  dishes  to  be  served  at  table. 

"  No  burgess,"  says  this  unconscious  humourist,  "must  have  a  carriage,  nor 
be  dressed  in  green  nor  grey,  nor  must  he  wear  ermine.  No  burgess  must  wear 
gold  nor  precious  stones,  neither  gold  nor  silver  crowns.  No  lady,  if  not  a  lady  of 
the  Manor,  must  have  more  than  two  dresses  a  year.  It  is  forbidden  to  a  burgess 
to  spend  more  than  six  francs  a  yard  on  any  material,  and  no  more  than  eight  francs 
per  yard  must  be  spent  by  ladies  of  superior  rank.  The  penalty  for  infringing 
these  laws  being  forfeiture  of  the  forbidden  article  for  a  year,  from  Easter  to  Easter." 

Sumptuary  laws  varied  curiously  according  to  the  monarch  by  whom  they 
were  issued.  Louis 
XI.  would  not  allow 
those  without  titles  to 
have  the  luxury  of 
adorning  their  tables 
with  pieces  of  gold 
plate,  and  goldsmiths 
had  to  ask  his  per- 
mission before  exe- 
cuting  any  order 
except  for  the  use  of 
the  Church.  Charles 
VIII.  would  allow  silk 
dresses,  but  no  gold  or 
silver  cloth. 

Francis J.,  Henri 

II.,  Charles  II.,  and  Henri  I IL^  each  forbade  articles  of  luxury  except  for  him- 
self, the  members  of  his  family,  and  his  courtiers. 

Rene  Benoit,  one  of  the  confessors  of  Henri  IV.,  used  all  his  influence  to  stop 
luxury  in  the  dress  of  his  contemporaries,  and  the  effect  was  disastrous  on  the 
Guipure  and  thread- work  industry  of  the  time. 

During  the  reign  of  Charles  IX.  protest  was  made  against  the  usurpation  by 
common  people  "  of  the  nobility's  privilege  of  riding  on  horseback,"  and  rich 
dressing  was  again  allowed.  Whatever  the  law  of  the  period,  the  result  was  gene- 
rally the  same  :  a  return  to  the  old  abuses  immediately  on  the  removal  of  the  edict, 
so  that  arrested  development  was  the  effect  on  the  lace  and  kindred  handicrafts  ; 
and  whereas  one  would  expect  a  story  of  continuous  prosperity  in  so  beautiful  a 
craft  as  lace-making,  which  appeals  to  everyone  on  account  of  the  small  initial 
outlay,  the  simplicity  of  the  tools  required,  and  the  scope  for  high  artistic  skill, 
we  are  continually  finding  arrested  development  and  check. 

Even    Venice,    the   home    of    lace,    was    not    exempt    from    legislation    which  Even  Vene- 
hampered  the  evolution  of  lace.  makingwas 

As  early  as  1299  the  Great  Council  forbade  any  trimming  which  cost  more  than   hampered  by 
five  lire  an  ell.     A  few  years  later  ladies  were  forbidden  the  use  of  jewellery  beyond  a   Ie8islation- 


Saracenic  example  of  Drawn  and  Embroidered  Linen.      From 
a  Tomb  in  Egypt,  tenth  or  eleventh  century  ft^fr     ^    •r\ 


10 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


In  the 
century  the 
Pope  per- 
mitted lace  to 
be  worn. 


prescribed  limit,  and  the  wearing  of  any  coif  in  gold  or  silver.  Children  under 
twelve  were  forbidden  to  wear  gold,  silver,  or  pearls,  but  from  twelve  to  twenty 
they  were  permitted  girdles  worth  not  more  than  twenty-five  ducats, 

Another  decree  in  1348  seems  strange  enough  :  morning  dresses  of  dark  green 
or  black  were  forbidden. 

In  1437,  after  another  vexatious  edict,  the  ladies  took  the  matter  into  their  own 
hands,  and  appealed  to  the  Pope,  who  gave  his  permission  for  the  wearing  of  the 
gauds. 

These  laws  of  the  Venetian  Senate  were  not  made  to  be  disregarded,  as  were 
many  of  those  in  England  and  France. 

The  Avogadori  del  Comune  having  seen  on  Carnival  Sunday  the  wife  of  Zorzi 
di  Bertucci  dressed  in  white  silk  contrary  to  the  law,  "  did  decree  that  the  honour- 
able lady  and  the  dressmaker  should  be  condemned  according  to  the  edict  of  1470." 
Again,  during  the  festivity  for  the  crowning  of  Andrea  Gritti,  the  niece  of  the  Doge, 
the  wife  of  one  of  the  Pisani  having  presented  herself  at  the  Palace  dressed  in  a 
fashion  forbidden  by  the  decree  of  the  Doge,  she  u>as  sent  back. 

In  1476  a  serious  blow  was  aimed  at  the  lace  trade,  for  a  law  was  made  for- 
bidding the  use  of  "  silver  and  embroidery  on  any  fabric  and  the  Punto  in  Aria 
of  linen  threads  made  with  a  needle,  or  gold  and  silver  threads." 

Then  in  1504  a  law  was  made  to  check  too  frequent  changes  in  fashion- 
"Among  so  many  expenses,  superfluous  and  useless,  the  women  in  this  city 


German  Example  of  Drawn  Linen  Work,  executed  in  the  fourteenth  century,  when  this  early 
form  of  Open  Ornamentation  was  soon  to  be  superseded  by  the  later  forms  of  Lace-work. 


or  LACE.  n 

show  a  vain-glorious  pomp  which  is  most  ruinous  for  the  nobles  and  burgesses:  that 
of  changing  so  often  the  shape  of  dresses." 

In  France,  where  the  Sumptuary  laws  were  carried  out  in  a  much  more 
half-hearted  manner,  the  futility  of  legislation  is  constantly  seen.  During 
the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.,  the  lace-wearing  period  par  excellence,  there  had 
never  been  so  many  edicts  against  the  use  of  personal  luxuries ;  nearly  a  dozen 
ordinances,  especially  against  lace-wearing,  were  published.  The  incongruity  of 
the  proclamations  of  the  King  against  lace-trimmed  garments,  when  at  the  same 
time  he  was  fostering,  subsidising,  and  encouraging  Royal  lace  manufactures, 
simply  shows  that  a  Royal  whim  was  more  powerful  in  those  days  than  logic. 
Discontent  of  the  masses  was  eventually  to  effect  what  Royal  edicts  could  not  • 
achieve,  and  even  while  still  more  lace  than  ever  before  was  made  and  was  used 
by  every  class,  when,  on  account  of  the  universal  use  of  costly  lace,  it  was  impos- 
sible to  know  the  burgher  from  the  noblemen,  the  Churchman  from  the  cavalier, 
the  seeds  of  decay  were  sown,  and  a  spirit  of  reaction  and  of  economy  grew  which 
was  to  culminate  in  the  citoyen  period  and  the  French  Revolution. 

Modest  designs,  less  florid  and  costly  workmanship,  were   demanded  by  the  Simplicity 
Court  of  Marie  Antoinette,  and  the  art  of  lace-making  at  its  best  died  amongst  the  *nd  th* 
muslin  folds  in  which  the  beautiful  Queen   clothed  herself  as  a  concession  to  the  Revolution 
spirit  of  an  age  which  demanded  simplicity.  were  fatal  to 

Colbert,  the  minister  of  Louis  XIV.,  in  establishing  the  home  lace  factories, 
foresaw  the  increase  to  the  exchequer  which  the  huge  sums  hitherto  spent  on  foreign 
laces  woufd  entail,  if  French  lace  could  be  made  to  equal  the  Venetian  fabric.  The 
edicts  checking  the  importation  of  foreign  laces  still  further  assisted  his  scheme. 
The  result  showed  that  the  brilliant  financier  was  right ;  his  mot  that  "  Fashion 
should  be  to  France  what  the  mines  of  Peru  were  to  Spain  "  has  come  true  to  the 
letter,  and  the  great  Napoleon  saw  no  better  way  of  improving  the  finances  of  the 
country  than  by  endeavouring  to  reinstate  the  dying  lace  factories.  Lace  may  be 
thought  by  some  to  be  only  a  simple,  graceful,  womanish  fabric,  unlikely  to  affect  • 

the  finances  of  a  great  nation  ;  but  it  has  d^ngjiinch-fQ^ France.  She  holds  to-day 
a  different  position  from  that  which  she  held  in  the  days  of  Le  Grand  Monarque, 
but,  thanks  to  Louis'  clever  minister,  she  still  retains  her  position  as  the  wardrobe  /of 
the  world. 

It  will  be  useful  to  remember  that,  roughly  speaking,  lace,  using  the  term  as  we 
now  understand  it,  was  first  made  and  worn  in  the  sixteenth  century;  that  its  The  finest 

development   was  rapid,  the  splendid  skill  and   delicacy  of  artistic  design  which   Iace. was 

,  .....  ,      r    ,  •    ,          i-  •  ,        i    c       made  in  the 

characterised  all  the  work  of  the  Renaissance  period  tending  to  raise  it  to  that  lotty    I7th  century. 

pinnacle  of  beauty  which  it  reached  in  the  seventeenth  century  ;  that  in  the  very 
climax  of  its  perfection  it  began  to  decline,  and  by  the  end  of  the  eighteenth 
century  the  art  of  lace-making  was  dead.  It  is  no  exaggeration  to  affirm 
that  the  sharp  blade  of  the  guillotine  which  severed  the  head  of  the  beautiful  Marie 
Antoinette,  also  severed  the  thread  which  wove  the  masterpieces  of  lace,  only  a 
few  of  which  remain  to  us  in  the  present  day  to  show  how  incomparably  beautiful 
was  the  Renaissance  lace,  for  such  productions  ceased  abruptly  at  the  end  of  the 
eighteenth  century. 


'.3l^fc^>: 

t   u-  a  -^     .._iu.S       lUSiU  .•:••=• 


Darned  Netting  or  Lacis. 

CHAPTER  II. 


ANECDOTAL   HISTORY  OF  MEDIEVAL 
LACE. 

Picture  Of  the  Times.  /„  the  Middle  Ages  laws  and  customs 
in  Europe  were  beginning  to  assume  local  peculiarities,  the  Church  being 
a  bond  of  unity  between  all  nations — the  Crusades,  c.  1096  to  1273,  tended 
towards  this.  After  the  Holy  Wars  came  the  struggle  between  France  and 
England,  the  rise  of  the  Spanish  monarchies,  the  destruction  of  Imperial 
authority  in  Germany,  the  splendour  and  fall  of  the  Italian  republics,  and 
the  fall" of  Constantinople  in  1453,  which  drove  the  Greeks  into  the  centre 
and.  west  of  Europe,  and  contributed  to  the  causes  of  the  Reformation. 

In  the  fourteenth  century  Chaucer  and  Cower,  the  poets,  lived.  From 
the  former  we  leant  much  of  the  domestic  and  industrial  life  in 
England.  Dante,  Petrarch,  and  Boccaccio  wrote  their  n'orld-famous 
works  in  Italy,  and  tell  us  incidentally  of  the  fashions  and  modes  of 
the  period ;  Riensi  lived ;  Cimabue  and  Giotto  painted.  Playing-cards 
were  invented,  and  paper  was  first  made  from  linen. 

In  the  fifteenth  century,  in  England,  few  foreign  luxuries  found  tlieir 
way  into  the  coutitry,  even  for  the  use  of  the  nobles.  It  was  in  this  century 
that  printing  and  the  art  of  engraving  ivere  invented,  and  by  1600 
productions  ~of  Raphael  were  transferred  to  the  newly  invented  paper, 
while  Michael  Angela  was  assisting  in  the  development  of  Art  in  Europe. 
The  Tudors  reigned  in  England ;  America  ivas  discovered  by  Columbus  ; 
and  Joan  of  Arc  lived. 

in  the  sixteenth  century  the  suppression  of  the  monasteries  took  place 
in  England :  this  had  an  immense  influence  on  the  lace-making  and  kindred 
industries  which  had  hitherto  been  exclusively  carried  on  in  the  consents 


Beaumont,  Fletcher,  and  Ben  Jonson.  A  seemingly  unimportant  inven- 
tion  was  made,—  that  of  the  pin,—  but  in  the  history  of  lace  its  utility  is 
abundantly  shown.  In  Italy  -the  sixteenth  century  is  famous  as  the 
Medician  era,  the  most  brilliant  in  Literature  and  Art  ;  Ariosto,  Tasso, 


I 


. 

'••  '"'"...:    ""  where  Albert  Diirer,   the  father  of  the  German  school  of  painting  and 

engraving,  also  flourished  at  this  time.  The  great  Spanish  artist,  Velas- 
quez, to  whom  we  are  indebted  for  so  many  detail  portraits  showing  the 
lace  of  the  period,  and  the  mode  ofivearing  ft,  belongs  to  this  century. 

T  is  a  significant  fact  that  the  two  widely-separated  countries  of  Europe  where 
pictorial  art  flourished  and  attained  a  high  perfection—  North  Italy  and 
Flanders  _  were  precisely  the  countries  where  lace-making  and  lace-wearing 
achieved  the  highest  standard  in  mediaeval  times.  This  is  perhaps  hardly  to 


Dnnrn  hf  Jsjjc  Olu-fr  Jjrrmn 


Queen  Elizabeth,  in  ruff  trimmed  with  the  most  elaborate  Thread  Guipure  of  the  period ; 
from  an  Engraving  by  George  Vertue  (1684-1756).  The  linen  cuffs  are  turned  over 
and  edged  with  the  same. 


MEDIEVAL     LACE. 


Reticella,  sixteenth  century. 


be  wondered  at,  as  we  know  that  from  the  very  beginning  of  the  sturdy 
Flemish  school  of  painters,  a  close  connection  was  kept  up  with  the  great  art 
centres  of  Italy.  Venetian  art  and  handiwork  inspired  the  equally  thriving, 

industrious,  and  artistic  inhabitants  of  the 
Low  Country,  and  at  the  end  of  the 
sixteenth  century  pattern  books  for  laces 
and  needle-point  were  issued  simultaneously 
in  the  two  places,  and  were  identical  in 
general  character. 

The  history  of  hand-made  lace,  in  the  sense  of  the  term  in  which  we  now  use 
it,  begins  with  the  sixteenth  century.  Before  that  time  there  are  no  traces  that  we 
know  of  in  the  costume  pictures  of  the  period,  and  though  this  or  that  fantastic 
tale  may  be  believed  with  regard  to  its  earlier  origin,  and  certain  forms  of  lace  work 
may  be  studied  with  profit  as  bearing  on  the  evolution  of  lace,  it  is  impossible  to 
commence  an  authentic  history  at  an  earlier  date. 

The  first  detailed  portraits  in  which  lace  is  painted  are  those  belonging  to  the 
early  Florentine  school  ;  this  points  to  the  fact  that  not  only  was   lace  first  made 
in  Italy,  but  also  first  worn  there.     One  of  the 
earliest  French  portraits  with  lace  in  it  is  that  of 
Henri  II.,  painted  at  Versailles. 

From  that  time  the  subjects  of  so  many  por- 
traits have  been  adorned  with  lace,  that  the  study 
of  its  variations  in  design,  workmanship  and 
mode  of  wearing  is  comparatively  easy  ;  help  is 
constantly  received  also  from  contemporary  litera- 
ture, inventories  and  wardrobe  accounts,  and  the 
Sumptuary  laws  of  the  different  countries  give  con- 
siderable insight  into  the  matter. 

Documents  still  exist  which  prove  that  lace 
properly  so  called  was  made  in  Italy  before  1500; 
one  belonging  to  the  Cathedral  of  Ferrara  is 
especially  interesting,  as  it  fixes  the  price  to  be 
paid  for  the  mending  and  ironing  of  the  lace 
trimmings  on  the  priests'  vestments. 

Double  evidence  of  the  existence  of  lace,  and, 
moreover,  of  special  makes  and  designs,  is  afforded 
in  the  records  of  the  Sforza  family.  In  1493,  on 
the  1 2th  of  September,  the  division  took  place 
of  the  property  of  the  sisters  Angela  and  Heppolita 
Sforza,  Viconti  of  Milan  ;  the  old  castle  belonging 
to  the  family  is  still  to  be  seen  in  the  Province  of 
Venice. 

Amongst  the  vast  amount  of  valuable  jewels 
and    other   personal    property   in    the    inventory   are    chronicled    borders,    veils, 
embroidery  of  fine  network  (Ricamo  a  reticella),  points  (Punti),  pieces  of  fine  network 


The  history 
of  hand' 
made  lace 
begins  in  the 
i6th  century. 


Sleeve  trimmed  with  the  Cutwork 
of  the  fifteenth  century.  From 
"  Lucretia,"  by  Bassano  ; 
painted  about  1462.  Photo- 
graph by  Anderson,  Rome. 


Inventory 
belonging  to 
the  Sforza 
family  first 
mentions 
varying 
kinds  of 
Lace. 


H  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE.  % 

(Lavoro  a  groppi),  bone  lace  (Lavoro  ad  ossa),  and  twelve  spindle  points  (Punti  dei 

dodisi  fusi).     All  these  names  are  to  be  found  in  books  of  lace  designs  of  the  period. 

No    wonder    that    several    different   countries,    notably    France,    Spain,    and 

Flanders,  claim  the  honour  of  introducing  so  beautiful  a  fabric  as  lace  to  the  world, 


,  Beatrix  d'Este-Sforza,  Duchess  of  Milan,  1490.     From 

the  picture  by  Leonardo  da  Vinci,  in  the  Ambrosian 
Library  at  Milan.  From  her  inventory  of  household 
effects  we  first  learn  the  names  and  varieties  of  laces 
known  in  the  fifteenth  century.  Photograph  by 
Anderson,  Home. 

and  it  is  in  the  history  of  lace  in  the  Middle  Ages  that  the  arguments  used  in  this 
controversy  must  be  touched  upon.  We  have  shown  that  many  peoples  have 
executed  networks  and  twisted  threads  of  gold,  silver,  and  silk  ;  but  in  its  more 
modern  guise,  Italy  has  certainly  led  the  world  with  regard  to  needle-point  lace.  It 


MEDL-EVAL     LACE. 


is  astonishing  that  notwithstanding  the   inventory  of  the   Sisters   Sforza  and  other 
documents,  besides  the  Italian  pattern   books  of  the  fifteenth  century,  one  writer 
asserts  that  it  was  under  Francis  I.  in    1544  that   "Women  and  the   dignitaries 
of  the  Church  began  to  adorn  their  garments 
and  vestments  with  a  kind  of  lace  which  was 
so  coarsely  worked  that  it  showed  the  art 
was  in  its  infancy." 

Again,  several  have  attributed  the  inven- 
tion of  lace  to  Barbara  Uttmann  ;  perhaps 
the  words  on  her  tomb  in  the  churchyard  of 
Annaberg  gave  rise  to  the  idea  :  "  Here  lies 
Barbara  Uttmann,  died  i4th  January,  1575, 
whose  invention  of  lace  in  the  year  1561  made 
her  the  benefactress  of  the  Hartz  Mountains." 


Charles  of  Savoy,  painted  in  1582,  in  the 
Lace-edged  Ruff  of  the  period. 


Catherine  de'  Medicis,  by  JeanClouet  (1541). 
It  was  this  Queen  who  brought  with  her 
from  Italy  the  fashion  of  wearing  the 
high  collar  still  named  after  her. 

It  is  probable  that  Frau  Uttmann  intro- 
duced bobbin. Jace  into  Germany,  hav- 
ing learned  the  art  from  a  native  of 
Brabant,  a  Protestant,  whom  the  cruel- 
ties of  the  Duke-  of  Alva  had  made  an 
exile.  That  she  "invented"  lace  is  a 
misleading  assertion.  Barbara  was  born 
in  1514  at  Utterlein,  where  her  father 
had  work  in  connection  with  the  mines 

of  the  Saxon  Hartz  Mountains.  She  married  Christopher  Uttmann,  a  rich  mining 
overseer.  The  mountain  girls  in  the  neighbourhood  of  her  home  had  long  made  a 
kind  of  network  for  the  miners  to  wear  . 

over  their  hair.  Barbara  taught  them 
to  improve  this  rough  tricot,  and  they  suc- 
ceeded in  producing  a  kind  of  plain  lace 
ground.  Aid  was  procured  from  Flan- 
ders, and  a  regular  workshop  set  up  at 
Annaberg  under  the  direction  of  Barbara 
Uttmann,  who  invented  various  simple 
patterns.  The  industry  spread  with  great  rapidity,  and  at  one  time  no  fewer 


Needle-point  Guipure  Lace  (Point  Gotico). 


i6 


HISTORY.     OF    HAND-MADE     LACE. 


The  oldest 
lace  pattern 
book  known 
is  now  in 
the  library  of 
the  Arsenal 
in  Venice. 


than  30,000  persons  were  employed  in  it.  At  the  age  of  sixty-one  Barbara 
Uttmann  died,  leaving  sixty-five  children  and  grandchildren,  thus  realising  a 
prophecy  that  St.  Anne  would  so  bless  the  one  good  Chatelaine  of  St.  Annaberg 
that  her  descendants  would  equal  in  number  the  bobbins  of  the  first  lace  she 
had  made. 

Flanders  bases  her  claim  to  priority  in  making  bobbin  lace  on  a  series  of  six 
woodcuts  executed  in   1580  by  Martin  de  Vos,  De   Brugn,  and  Van   Londerseel, 
which   represent   occupations  during  the  various  periods  of  life  ;  amongst  these  a 
young  woman   is   shown    seated    with   a   lace   cushion  on    her   lap,    whence    it    is 
argued  that   lace  was  already 
common  in    Flanders    at    that 
time. 

In  Venice,  as  early  as 
1557,  a  book  was  published 
giving  patterns  for  bobbin  laces. 
In  the  course  of  some  inter- 
esting remarks  entitled  "  Le 
Pompe,"  the  author  explains 
that  this  lace  "is  a  work  not 
only  beautiful,  but  useful  and 
needful."  This  volume  is  now 
to  be  seen  in  the  library  of 
the  Arsenal  in  Venice,  and  is 
the  oldest  known  lace  pattern 
book.  It  is  likely,  however, 
that  it  was  not  the  first  brought 
out,  as  no  instructions  are 
given  in  it  as  to  how  the  lace 
is  made,  nor  is  there  any  de- 
scription of  the  materials  and 
implements  required ;  this 
makes  it  probable  that  the 
author,  whose  name  is  un- 
known, was  not  the  inventor  of 
pillow  lace,  and  that  the  handi- 


Christian  IV.,  King  of  Denmark,  1577 — 1648 ;  by 
Peeter  Isaakoz.  This  portrait  shows  how  impor- 
tant a  feature  was  lace  in  the  rich  dress  of  the 
period. 


craft  was  already  well  known 
in  Venice.  Evidence,  there- 
fore, appears  to  favour  the 
theory  that  to  Italy  belongs 
the  honour  of  introducing  bobbin  as  well  as  needle-point  lace. 

In  England  the  humble  endeavours  of  the  peasants  in  mediaeval  times  were 
not  assisted  by  schools  of  design,  nor  were  the  peasant  lace-makers  of  Germany, 
Sweden,  Russia,  and  Spain  encouraged  to  produce  fabrics  of  artistic  pattern. 
When  Barbara  Uttmann  instructed  the  country  folk  of  the  Hartz  Mountains  in  the 
sixteenth  century,  a  sort  of  purling  and  network  was  the  kind  produced ;  and  German 
laces  have  never  acquired  artistic  reputation. 


MEDIEVAL     LACE. 


In  1246  Po  )e  Innocent  IV.  ordered  vestments  to  be  sent  to  Rome  for  his  use, 
despatching  an  official  letter  to  an  English  abbot  to  procure  the  opus  Anglicanum  or 
nuns'  work.  I, ace  is  still  called  nuns'  work  in  outlying  districts  in  England  and  the 
Continent. 

But  it  was  not  only  in  convents  that  the  art  of  lace-making  was  taught.  The 
great  ladies — heads  of  households — prided  themselves  on  the  number  of  young  girls 
who  came  to  their  castles  or  suzerain  manors,  and,  taking  up  a  temporary  residence, 
were  taught  lace-making,  embroidery,  weaving,  and  matters  in  connection  with  the 

still-room.  During  the  hours 
while  the  needles  were  plied, 
singing  was  encouraged,  and 


certain  ballades    a   toiks   were 


Special  songs 
•were  sung 
by  the  lace 

composed    especially    for    the   makers  as 
use    of    the    workers.       Such  they  worked, 
ballads  are  still  used  in  Italy 
(one  specially  composed  for  this 
book  is  given  in  the  chapter  on 
"  The  Literature  of  Lace"). 

Many  interesting  historical 
scenes  have  taken  place  in  the 
working  rooms  of  royal  ladies. 
Wolsey  found  Queen  Catherine 
at  work  amongst  her  women 
when  he  went  to  her  at  Bride- 
well to  speak  of  her  divorce. 
The  unfortunate  Mary  Queen 
of  Scots.found  solace  in  plying 
the  needle  during  her  lonely 
hours  of  captivity,  and  in  many 
of  her  letters  demands  are 
made  for  silk  and  gold  thread. 
She  had  learnt  the  art  from 
her  governess,  Lady  Fleming, 
and  had  been  perfected  by 
Catherine  de'  Medicis,  who 
was  a  famous  needlewoman. 

M.  de  Barante,  the  his- 
torian of  the  Duke  of  Burgundy, 
writes  that  Charles  the  Bold 

in  1476  lost  his  laces  at  one  of  the  battles  in  which  he  was  engaged.  It  is  probable 
that  these  laces  were  of  the  gold  or  silver  gimp  variety,  as  fragments  of  such 
kinds  are  among  his  relics.  Jacob  Van  Eyck,  the  Flemish  poet,  sang  the  praises  of 
lace-making  in  the  long-winded  Latin  verse  of  the  day;  they  end  with  this  somewhat 
involved  period  : — "  Go,  ye  men,  inflamed  with  the  desire  of  the  Golden  Fleece, 
endure  so  many  dangers  by  land,  so  many  at  sea,  whilst  the  woman,  remaining  in 
her  Brabantine  home,  prepares  Phrygian  fleeces  by  peaceful  assiduity."  It  was  the 


Elizabeth  of  Bourbon,  painted  about  1620,  in  the 
Lace-edged  Ruff  of  the  period. 


i8 


HISTORY     OF     HAND-MADE     LACE. 


Refugees 
from  Flan- 
ders taught 
bobbin  lace- 
making  to 
the  whole  of 
Northern 
Europe. 


The  kinds  of 
lace  made  in 
mediaeval 
times. 

Cut-work. 


Punto 
Applicato. 


lace  manufacture  alone  which  saved  Flanders  from  utter  ruin  when  the  country  was 
deserted  by  so  many  handicraftsmen,  who  fled  from  the  awful  religious  persecution. 
Owing  to  the  exodus  at  this  time,  every  country  of  Northern  Europe  learned  the 
art  of  bobbin  lace-making  from  Flanders. 

The  manufacture  of  that  most  beautiful  of  laces,  Brussels,  commenced  in 
mediaeval  times,  judging  from  the  patterns  of  the  earliest  known  fragments,  which 
are  to  be  found  in  the  churches  of  Brabant ;  these  pieces  formed  gifts  of  munificent 
noblemen,  who  did  much  to  promote  the  industry  of  their  country  by  their 
patronage.  Linen  embroideries,  darned  netting,  knotted  and  plaited  laces  were 
made  in  the  convents  all  over  Europe  at  this  period,  and  were  chiefly  used  for 
Church  purposes.  Sometimes  the  convent  rules  were  considerably  relaxed  for  the 
benefit  of  the  lace-workers,  and  mediaeval  human  nature  seems  to  have  been  very 
much  like  that  existing  at  the  present  day,  as  an  old  journal  of  the  kloster  at  the 
convent  of  Wadstena,  Sweden,  shows.  Mrs.  Bury  Palliser  thus  relates  the 
incident : 

"The  rules  of  the  convent  forbade  the  nuns  to  touch  either  gold  or  silver, 
save  in  their  netting  and  embroidery. 

"  One  of  the  nuns  writes  to  her  lover  without  the  walls — '  I  wish  I  could 
send  you  a  netted  cap  that  I  myself  have  made,  but  when  Sister  Karin 
Andersdotter  saw  that  I  had  mingled  gold  and  silver  thread  in  it  she  said, 
"  You  must  surely  have  some  beloved." 

"  '  "  I  do  not  think  so,"  I  answered,  "here  in  the  kloster  you  may  easily  see 
if  any  of  the  brethren  has  such  a  cap,  and  I  dare  not  send  it  by  anyone  to  a 
sweetheart  outside  the  walls." 

"  '  "  You  intend  it  for  Axel  Nelson,"  answered  Sister  Karin. 

"  '  "  It  is  not  for  you  to  talk,"  I  replied,  "  I  have  seen  you  net  a  long  hood 
and  talk  and  prattle  yourself  with  Brother  Bertol."  ' 

It  was  not  until  the  sixteenth  century  that  lace-making  became  a  lay  industry. 
In  Italy  and  Spain,  where  the  influence  of  the  Church  was  paramount,  point  and 
bobbin  lace  work  remained  confined  to  the  religious  orders  until  long  after. 
Gradually  the  nuns  taught  the  art  to  their  lay  pupils,  but  it  spread  but  slowly. 

The  kinds  of  lace  work  made  in  mediaeval  times  were  linen  embroidery  and 
reticella,  darned  netting  on  knotted  net,  darned  netting  on  twisted  net,  drawn  work, 
macrame  plaited  laces,  cut  work  and  embroidery.  (For  full  description  of  each 
see  "  Dictionary  of  Lace.") 

Cut- work  comprised  a  wide  variety  of  decoration.  The  linen  edges  were 
sometimes  worked  in  close  embroidery,  the  threads  occasionally  drawn  and 
afterwards  worked  with  the  needle  in  various  forms ;  or  the  ends  of  the  cloth  were, 
perhaps,  unravelled  as  if  for  a  fringe  and  then  plaited  in  a  geometric  pattern.  The 
grave  clothes  of  St.  Cuthbert  were  ornamented  in  this  manner.  "  There  has 
been,"  says  one  who  witnessed  his  disinterment,  "  put  over  him  a  sheet ;  this  sheet 
had  a  fringe  of  linen  thread  of  a  finger's  length  upon  its  sides." 

Cut-work  is  sometimes  made  with  fine  lawn,  called  quintain,  which  is  fastened 
to  a  background  of  interlacing  threads,  the  lawn  being  cut  away  when  the  pattern 
has  been  stitched  on.  This  variety  is  occasionally  called  Punto  Applicato. 


MEDIEVAL     LACE. 


Another  form  of  this  work  was  made  without  the  opaque  lawn,  and  was  simply 
a  network  darned  upon  with  counted  stitches,  Point  Conte.  This  work  is  also 
called  Lads. 

Lace,  or  passements,  the  general  term  for  the  gimps  and  braids,  together  with 
the  laces,  like  those  with  which  in  modern  times  we  unite  two  parts  of  a  dress,  were 
made  of  silk,  worsted,  or  thread.  They  also  serve  as  links  in  the  chain  of 

evidence     which     brings     us     to     the    hand- 
made laces  of  to-day. 

Cut-work  sometimes  signified  what 
we  now  call  applique  work,  mean- 
ing  rather    the    cutting-out     of 
pieces  of  velvet,  silk,  or  cloth, 
and  sewing  them  down  to  the 
garment  with  braid,  than  the 
open  linen  work,  which  the 
modern     meaning     of    the 
work  describes.     Chaucer 
speaks  of  the  priests  wear- 
ing gowns  of  scarlet  and 
green  cut-work. 

In  the   middle  of   the 
sixteenth    century  Point 
Coupe      became      widely 
known.   Geometrical  pat- 
terns were  the  most  used ; 
the    linen    on    which    the 
work     was    done    was     of 
splendidly      tough      make, 
which   rendered  possible  the 
survival  of  specimens  to  the 
present    day.     Darned    netting 
dates    back    as    early    as    linen 
embroidery ;    it  was  very  exten- 
sively used  in  the   Middle  Ages, 
especially  in    Russia   and  Sicily, 
where   it    is   still    popular.     The 
earlier    patterns   are    of   the    old 
lozenge    type,    and   also  include 
fleuv    de    Us    and   other    armorial 

designs,  monsters,  and  foliage.  Many  of  the  old  pattern  books  give  designs  for 
darned  netting  ;  in  fact,  this  kind  appears  almost  exclusively  in  those  earlier 
published.  In  the  Exeter  Cathedral  inventory  it  is  stated  that  there  were,  in 
1327,  three  pieces  of  darned  netting  for  use  at  the  altar. 

Drawn-work  was  as  well  known  in  the  Middle  Ages  as  were  cut-work  and 
darned  netting ;  altar  cloths  and  winding-sheets  were  chiefly  ornamented  with 

c  2 


Point  Conte 
or  Lacis. 


Passements, 
gimps,  and 
braids. 


Darned 
netting. 


Cavaliera  Fiammingo,  in  Collar  of  Guipure  Point 
Gotico  ;  painted  by  Francesco  Pourbus  in  the 
sixteenth  century.  This  picture  is  now  in  the 
Academic  at  Venice.  Photograph  by  Naya, 
Venice. 


Drawn- 
work. 


20 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Knotted 
lace. 


Bobbin  lace. 


it;  groups  of  animals,  strange  monsters,  armorial  shields,  heraldic  devices,  and 
weird-looking  trees  served  as  designs,  such  patterns  being  more  suitable  for  the 
scope  of  the  work  than  the  intricate  geometric  patterns  used  in  darned  netting. 
This  was  the  favourite  lace  of  the  ladies  of  the  powerful  house  of  Medici,  both  in 
Italy  and  in  France,  and  it  was  natural  that  the  kind  which  was  admired  by  the 
reigning  house  should  be  popular  with  the  nobles.  The  ruffs  and  manchettes,  the 
aprons  and  collars  of  the  period  were  all  trimmed  with  the  finest  reticella  and 
drawn-work,  which  formed  an  important  item  in  the  trousseau  of  a  noble  lady 
of  the  Middle  Ages. 

The  bridal  or  carnival  laces,  as  they  were  called,  were  not  only  worn  at  the 
wedding,  but  also  at  the  succession  of  festivities  always  given  in  honour  of  the 
event ;  they  were  subsequently  kept  for  wearing  at  carnivals  and  other  stately 
ceremonials  when  the  relaxation  of  the  Sumptuary  laws  permitted  their  display. 
The  patterns  were  usually  formed  by  the  armorial  devices  of  the  contracting 
families  being  combined.  Since  mediaeval  times  reticella,  or  drawn-work,  has 
not  been  much  used  for  personal  adornment.  It  is  now  considered  more 
suitable  for  Church  and  household  use. 

Though  knotted  borders  and  fringes  occur  on  garments  of  Eastern  nations  in 
remote  times,  the  more  intricate  knotted  lace  dates  from  the  fifteenth  century.  It 
is  spoken  of  in  the  first  record  of  Italian  laces,  as  we  have  already  mentioned, 
in  the  Sforza  inventory,  and  patterns  are  given  in  books  in  use  in  the  first 
half  of  the  sixteenth  century.  In  the  mediaeval  method  of  working  it,  horizontal 
threads  were  fixed  on  heavy  pillows,  and  to  them  vertical  threads  were  attached  ; 
the  knotting  was  done  much  in  the  same  way  as  on  the  macrame  cushion  of  the 
present  day. 

The  making  of  the  knotted  lace,  Lavoro  a  groppi,  was  chiefly  confined  to  Italy. 
None  of  it  is  found  in  either  France  or  the  Netherlands,  the  two  other  lace 
centres  of  the  Middle  Ages.  It  was  used  on  the  linen  scarves,  or  cloths,  worn 
as  head-coverings  by  the  peasants,  the  patterns  being  occasionally  most  intricate. 
In  the  seventeenth  century,  however,  the  long  fringed  ends  were  again  allowed 
to  flow  free  without  elaborate  knotting.  Lavoro  a  groppi  never  achieved  the 
popularity  of  the  other  mediaeval  laces. 

When  once  the  pillow  was  introduced  for  facilitating  the  making  of  knotted 
lace,  or  macrame,  the  plaiting  of  loose  threads  did  not  take  long  to  grow  in 
popularity.  The  work  was  easier  than  the  knotting,  less  straining  to  the  fingers, 
more  suitable  for  light  and  graceful  patterns  than  could  be  achieved  in  cut-work, 
drawn-work,  or  knotting.  The  success  of  plaited  laces  was  assured,  and  the 
introduction  of  bobbins,  whether  owing  to  the  accidental  discovery  of  a  love-sick 
maiden,  according  to  the  story  well-known  in  the  City  of  the  Lagoons,  or  to  some 
other  source,  soon  came  about.  The  legend  is  pretty  and  worthy  of  mention  as  a 
graceful  story  only. 

A  young  fisherman  of  the  Adriatic  was  betrothed  to  a  girl,  who  made  for  him 
a  new  net  as  a  gift.  The  first  time  it  was  cast  the  only  catch  was  a  piece  of 
petrified  wrack  grass  or  white  coralline  weed.  Soon  afterwards  the  fisherman  was 
pressed  into  the  service  of  the  Venetian  Navy,  and  the  girl  was  left  with  the  now 
useless  net  in  her  charge.  While  she  wept  bitterly  she  wound  the  delicate  coralline 


MEDIEVAL     LACE. 


21 


strands  in  and  out  of  the  net,  then  twisted  the  threads  and  small  weights  attached, 
and  made  an  imitation  of  the  spirals  of  the  grass,  throwing  and  twisting  the  lead 
just  as  the  bobbins  are  thrown.  The  effect  was  so  beautiful  and  easily  obtained 
that  the  girl,  who  was  accustomed  to  making  the  coarse  guipure  of  the  period, 
followed  up  her  discovery,  in  course  of  time  evolving  serviceable  tools,  not  unlike 
the  cushion  and  bobbins  of  the  present  day. 


Mary  Queen  of  Scots,  in  Coif  edged  with  purling,  the  narrow  edging  of 
twisted  threads  ;   the  Ruff  is  trimmed  with  Guipure  Lace. 

The  Le  Puy  factory  appears  to  be  the  most  ancient  of  the  French  lace  centres 
dating  back  to  the  sixteenth  century  ;  it  was  in  connection  with  this  factory  that  the 
Jesuit  father,  Saint  Fra^ois  Regis,  who  is  considered  the  patron  saint  of  the 
lace-makers,  earned  his  canonisation.  Sumptuary  edicts  were  published  by  the 
Seneschal  of  Le  Puy  which  threatened  to  annihilate  the  lace  trade,  a  heavy  fine 
being  imposed  on  any  who  wore  lace  upon  their  clothes.  The  reasons  for  the 
edicts  have  an  element  of  humour  in  them  :  the  general  custom  of  wearing  lace 


Le  Puy  in 
France  dates 
its  connec- 
tion with  the 
lace  trade 
from  the  i6th 
century. 


22  HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

among  all  classes  was  undesirable,  it  was  said,  as  it  caused  the  distinction  between 
high  and  low  to  disappear.  Father  Regis  not  only  consoled  the  sufferers  in 
their  poverty,  brought  on  by  the  edict,  but  also  went  to  Toulouse  and  obtained 
a  revocation  of  it. 

Pattern  books  of  the  sixteenth  century  give  instructions  for  plaiting  gold  and 
silver  threads  ;  Lucca,  Genoa,  Florence,  Venice,  and  Milan  were  all  celebrated 
for  their  gold  and  silver  plaiting;  and  Point  d'Espagne  was  known  and  worked 
in  coloured  silks  as  well  as  metal  covered  threads.  It  was  in  Genoa  and  the 
neighbourhood  that  the  lace-workers  first  ceased  to  follow  the  fashion  in  using 
only  geometrical  patterns  for  plaited  lace  work,  and  produced  in  silk  and  flax  the 
scalloped  borders.  This  Point  de  Genes  Frise  became  famous.  A  history  of  the 
manufacture  of  this  lace  at  Albissola,  a  village  near  Genoa,  was  written,  and  a  full 
account  is  given  of  the  famous  sixteenth  century  plaited  laces  of  silk  in  black,  white 
and  varied  colours. 

Point  de  Genes  Frises  was  worn  as  the  handsomest  lace  procurable  until  the 
seventeenth  century,  when  the  reign  of  Mediaeval  lace  was  over,  and  the  elaborate 
needle-point  and  bobbin  laces  of  the  Renaissance  period  swept  the  older  and 
simpler  methods  into  oblivion. 


Early  specimen  of  Gold  and  Silver  Thread  Lace. 


Specimens  of  rich  Venetian  Point 
lag-hato  Foliami  and  Rose 
Point. 


CHAPTER    III. 

ANECDOTAL  HISTORY  OF  LACE  IN 
THE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY. 

Picture  Of  the  Times.  //  fs  important  to  remem- 
ber that  the  seventeenth  century  was  a  period  of  great  colonial 
activity,  so  that  fresh  markets  were  opened  for  the  lace  ami  other 
industries.  The  East  India  Company  ivas  founded,  Jamaica  was 
conquered,  Boston  founded,  as  well  as  Pennsylvania,  Maryland, 
and  Carolina,  the  French  West  India  Company  flourished,  and 
the  Dutch  settled  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope. 

The  act  which  has  had  more  influence  than  any  other  on  the 
History  of  Lace,  look  place  in  France  in  this  century.  This  was  the 
revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes,  which  was  instrumental  in 
scattering  the  lace-makers  and  lace  merchants  all  over  Protestant 
Europe.  It  took  place  in  1685,  when  Louis  XIV.  was  on  the  throne. 
Richelieu  and  Mazarin  were  the  great  French  Ministers  of  the 
century  ;  while  in  England,  Cromwell's  was  the  master  mind  ;  and 
the  austerity  in  dress  of  the  Roundheads  for  a  lime  depressed  the 
lace  trade,  which  flourished  again  at  the  Restoration  of  Charles 
II.  The  devastating  influence  of  the  Plague  and  the  Fire  of  London 
affected  all  industries.  In  Holland,  the  Treaty  of  Nimeguen  in 
1678  changed  the  nationality  of  many  important  lace  centres. 
iVilliam  III.  of  Holland  eventually  became  King  of  England.  In 
Russia,  the  brilliant  Court  of  the  Romanoff  dynasty  held  sway, 
and  the  personal  symplicity  of  Peter  the  Great  ivas  in  vivid  contrast 
to  the  barbaric  splendour  of  the  surroundings  of  Catherine  I. 
Literature  and  Science  in  Europe  were  represented  during  the 
century  in  France  by  Balzac.  Corneille,  Racine,  Fe'nelon,  Moliere, 
La  Fontaine,  Bossuet,  and  Boileau,  and  the  Acade'mie  Francaise 
was  founded.  England  was  represented  by  Algernon  Sidney.  Milton, 
Locke,  Waller,  Otivay,  Dryden,  and  Harvey.  The  Royal  Society 
was  founded.  In  Italy,  Sarpi,  Marini,  Tassoni,  and  Galileo  ivere 
celebrated.  In  Spain  Cervantes  wrote  his  immortal  "Don  Quixote." 
The  artists  of  the  century  include  such  names  as  IVatteau,  Fra- 
'onard  '.Charles  Lebrun,  Abraham  Basse,  Guido,  Albani,  Salvator 
?osa,  Domenichino,  Rubens,  Van  Dyck,  Rembrandt  and  the  two 
Teniers. 


$: 


THE  history  of  lace  in  the  seventeenth  century  is  the  history  of  the  fabric  at  the 
most  elaborate  and  beautiful  stage  of  its  development.    To  Italian  influence 
at  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century  was  due  the   fashion  then  obtaining 
throughout  Europe  of  wearing  the  ruffs  decorated  in  a  lavish  manner  with  the 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE     LACE. 


Venice  fur- 
nished most 
of  the 

luxuries  and 
led  the 
fashions. 


Francois,  Prince  of  Savoy -Carignan,  by  Van  Dyck.     1631. 
He  wears  the  rich  lace  collar  and  cuffs  of  the  period. 

geometric  lace  of  the  period.  Lace  of  gold  and  silver  thread  trimmed  the  mantles, 
cloaks,  and  all  other  garments;  the  raised  points  of  Venice  were  well  known, 
for,  despite  the  commencement  of  the  decline  in  the  prosperity  of  Venice,  that 

city  maintained  for  a  short  time  longer  her 
high  position  as  the  creator  of  all  models 
of  fashion  and  luxury.  The  Venetian  silks 
and  costly  laces  were  unrivalled,  and  when 
factories  were  to  be  established  in  other  parts 
of  Europe,  it  was  from  Italy  that  skilled  work- 
men were  enticed. 

Catherine  de'  Medicis,  on  her  arrival  from 
Italy,  encouraged  enormous  expenditure  on 
dress,  at  the  court  in  Paris,  believing  that  the 
brilliant  fetes  would  divert  the  minds  of  the 
people  from  the  unsatisfactory  political  state. 
Sumptuary  edicts  were  issued  in  vain,  no 
fewer  than  ten  being  proclaimed  during  the 
last  half  of  the  sixteenth  century;  but  at  the 
same  time  the  King  wore  on  his  dress  enormous  quantities  of  gold  lace,  at  the 
meeting  of  the  States  of  Blois. 


Rare  specimen  of  Bobbin-made  Lace  of 
unusual  width  and  degraded  ornament 
resembling  the  Peasant  Lace  of  Crete. 
In  each  scallop  a  man  with  uplifted 
arms  holds  a  flagon,  and  on  either  side 
are  deer. 


SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY. 


Madame  Verbiest,  by  Gpnzales  Coques.  1664.  One  of  the  first 
pictorial  representations  of  straight-edged  lace  which  by  this 
time  rivalled  the  early  scalloped  edges  in  popular  favour. 


In  1594,  1600,  1601,  and  1606,  Henri  IV.,  his  successor,  made  other 
Sumptuary  laws  and  abided  by  them  himself,  wearing  "  a  doublet  of  tafifety 
without  either  trimming  or  lace  "  ;  and  Sully,  his  minister,  prohibited  under  pain 

of  corporal  punishment  any  dealings  with 
foreign  lace  merchants.  "  It  is  necessary," 
he  said,  "  to  rid  ourselves  of  our  neighbour's 
goods  which  deluge  the  country." 

As  long  as  Marie  de'  Medicis  lived,  the 
upstanding  collar  worn  at  the  back  of  the 
dress,  which  still  bears  the  name  of  the 
Medicis  collar,  was  used  with  its  edgings 
of  fine  lace.  The  ruin  of  the  nobles  on 
account  of  their  extravagance  in  dress 
becoming  imminent,  in  1613  the  Queen 
published  tne  "  Reglement  pour  les  super- 


Italian-made  Bobbin  Lace,  6J  inches  wide, 
about  1650,  showing  the  change  from 
the  Vandyked  to  the  straight  edge 
which  took  pla'ce  at  that  period. 


The  Medicis 
collar,  •which 
is  still  so 
popular, 
was  intro- 
duced in  the 
tyth  century. 


fluites  des  habits,"  in  which  the  wearing  of  lace  and  embroidery  was  forbidden. 


26  HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

In  a  curious  collection  of  costumes  of  the  period  made  by  M.  de  Bonnard 
(Bibliotheque  Nationale),  the  enormously  extravagant  use  of  lace  may  be  seen. 

In  one  portrait  the  corsage,  which  is  decollete,  is  trimmed  with  Point 
d'Angleterre,  the  brocaded  train  with  rich  braid  ;  in  front,  a  petticoat,  made 
entirely  of  Point  de  France,  is  displayed.  The  shoulders  are  covered  with  a  cape 
with  double  flounce  of  Point  d'Angleterre,  and  on  the  head  is  worn  a  hat  of  fine 
Valenciennes  guipure,  wired  and  drawn. 

It  was  at  this  time  that  many  of  the  old  pattern  books  were  printed,  no  fewer 
than  six  at  Lyons,  and  many  editions  of  Vinciola's  works  in  Paris  from  1587  to 
1623  ;  full  details  of  these  are  given  in  the  chapter  on  the  "  Literature  of  Lace." 

Point  de  Venise  in  relief  was  first  produced  to  supply  the  demand  for  some 
novelty  at  this  time  ;  the  old  type  suggested  to  the  workers  the  creation  of  the  new, 
and  so  popular  was  the  raised  point  from  the  first  moment  of  its  introduction,  that 
•  for  many  years  it  dethroned  all  other  kinds  of  lace  in  the  taste  of  the  public.  Seguin 
says,  "  If  perfection  can  exist  on  earth,  it  has  been  attained  by  the  makers  of  lace, 
and  this  specially  applies  to  the  Venetian  lace  of  this  period."  Its  distinctive  style 
lies  in  the  ornaments  of  flowers  or  leaves,  which  have  a  richly  raised  outline. 
This  outline  is  filled  with  jours  or  stitches  of  the  most  beautiful  and  intricate  kind. 
The  different  sections  of  the  design  are  united  by  a  groundwork  of  brides  decorated 
with  pearls  or  loops.  The  effect  is  that  of  carved  ivory,  though  the  lace  has  a  soft 
and  velvety  richness  which  the  coldness  of  ivory  can  never  imitate  ;  these  reliefs 
wrought  in  flax  thread  are  amongst  the  most  beautiful  objects  in  the  world. 

For  a  long  time  Venice  only  produced  this  lace,  but  Colbert  introduced  it  into 

France    when  he    obtained   Italian   workers  for   the  French  factories;  and  in  the 

middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  it  was  as  much  made  in  France  as   were  the 

.  bobbin    and    other   pillow    laces  during    the  reign    of   Louis  XV.      Venice    point 

made  in  France,  was,  by  Royal  ordinance,  called  Point  de  France. 

Lace-making  was  stimulated,  fresh  designs  appeared  constantly,  and  the  beauti- 
ful points  of  Italy  and  Flanders  began  to  make  their  appearance  at  all  the  Courts  of 
Europe ;  besides  being  used  in  the  decoration  of  the  altars  of  the  Church,  and  in 
the  trimming  of  the  priests'  vestments. 

The  falling  '  Immediately  after  the  introduction  of  Point  de  Venise,  the  ruff  or  fraise  became 
collar  re-  demode,  as  unsuitable  for  displaying  its  charms,  and  was  replaced  by  the  deep 
rutt.  scalloped  collar,  made  entirely  of  lace  or  with  rich  point  lace  border.  This  change 

in  the  fashion  produced  an  interesting  modification  in  the  French  guipure,  another 
of  the  laces  of  the  period.  The  fabric  had  hitherto  been  fine  and  light,  so  that  it 
would  stand  out"  well  as  a  trimming  for  the  ruffs  when  mounted  on  cambric  or 
lawn  :  now  it  became  heavier,  as  more  suitable  for  the  falling  collar;  the  edges  were 
enriched  with  a  kind  of  point  d'esprit,  made  with  three  projecting  wheat-shaped 
lobes,  which  gave  weight  and  helped  to  keep  the  collar  in  place.  Later,  when 
guipure  was  less  made,  these  lobes  were  imitated,  and  the  colour  was  dyed  a  pale 
yellow  to  falsely  indicate  age,  so  that  purchasers  might  believe  that  the  lace  had 
been  made  during  the  falling  collar  period.  At  this  time  the  guipure  designs  were 
extremely  characteristic,  being  much  more  ornamented  than  at  any  other.  The 
ornaments  were  tied  to  one  another,  and  opened  in  a  vase  or  fan-shaped  pattern  which 
was  most  effective,  more  especially  from  the  great  beauty  and  delicacy  of  the  work. 


SEVENTEENTH     CENTURY. 


27 


Sleeves  were  trimmed  with  revers  of  lace,  lace  hung  down  from  the  tops 
of  the  men's  boots,  and  garters  worn  like  a  bandage  or  scarf  round  the  knee 
were  edged  with  point  lace  ;  on  dress  and  court  shoes  a  large  rosette  of  lace 
adorned  the  instep  ;  gloves,  caps,  aprons,  capes  in  double  and  treble  tiers  were 
worn  by  the  ladies,  and  Italian  laces  adorned  even  the  christening  suits. 

In  one  of  M.  de  Bonnard's  pictures  we  see  that  even  the  servants  wore  lace- 
trimmed  garments ;  the  attendants  of  the  young  Due  d'Anjou  are  covered  with 
costly  points,  and  the  cradle,  bed,  and  sheets  are  decorated  with  the  same  beautiful 
fabric.  The  household  table  linen  of  this  time  was  richly  trimmed  with  lace. 

It  was  in  the  seventeenth  century  that  in  French  Flanders,  in  Valenciennes, 

and  the  surrounding  district,  the 
laces  with  straight  border  were 
first  made.  This  was  an  im- 
portant innovation,  for  hitherto 
elaborate  escalops  only  had  been 
known.  It  must  be  remembered 
that  the  Valenciennes  of  this 
period  was  different  from  that 
we  are  accustomed  to  see  in  the 
modern  production  :  the  net  had 
a  much  larger  mesh  and  the 
thread  used  was  infinitely  finer. 
Though  Italian  laces  of  the 
seventeenth  century  were  per- 
fectly imitated  in  France,  the 
laces  of  Belgium  and  England 
of  the  same  period  were  not 
made  except  in  the  countries  in 
which  they  had  originated.  This 
is  accounted  for  by  the  special 
stitch,  called  the  crossing  or 
crochetage,  being  a  trade  secret, 
and  jealously  guarded. 

When  the  marriage  of  Louis 
XIII.  to  Anne  of  Austria  took 
place,  the  collars  of  the  Medicis 
changed  in  character,  being  worn 

farther  from  the  head  and  sloping  more  outwards,  and  Spanish  lace  became  the 
favourite. 

Edicts  were  constantly  being  issued,  the  most  celebrated  of  the  many  in  the 
seventeenth  century  being  that  called  the  Code  Michaud,  which  entered  into  the 
most  minute  regulations  of  the  toilet  which  a  grandmotherly  legislation  could  devise; 
but  there  was  little  result  beyond  laughter,  and  a  budget  of  clever  skits  and 
caricatures;  and  when  Louis  XIII.  died,  his  effigy  was  exposed  to  public  view 
dressed  in  a  shirt  of  fine  holland,  with  rich  lace  collar  and  manches,  or  outside 
cuff  trimmings,  of  Italian  point. 


Henrietta  Maria,  wife  of  Charles  I.  of  England,  from 
a  painting  by  Van  Dyck  (from  Seidlitz's  "Historical 
Portraits  ").  The  great  artist's  appreciation  of.the 
rich  and  beautiful  effect  of  lace  is  very  apparent. 


Every  gar- 
ment was 
trimmed 
with  lace, 
even  to  the 
boots  and 
garters  of 
the  men. 


28 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Spanish  lace 

•was  •worn 

when 

a  Spanish 

Princess 

became 

Queen    of 

France. 


Colbert 
founded   the 
Alenccn 
factory. 


The  courtiers  of  the  Regency  under  Anne  of  Austria  were  no  less  extravagant 
in  their  taste  for  fine  lace.  The  size  of  the  boot  tops  was  compared  to  the  farthin- 
gales of  the  women,  and  the  space  between  outstanding  leather  and  the  limb  was 
filled  with  ruffles  of  costly  lace.  Mazarin,  in  1652,  while  engaged  in  the  siege  of  a 
town,  was  purchasing  laces  from  Flanders,  Venice,  and  Genoa.  These  were 
intended  as  patterns  for  the  factories  of  Point  de  France,  which  were  already 
contemplated.  In  1660  fresh  Sumptuary  orders  were  passed,  prohibiting  the  use  of 
all  foreign  laces,  Genoa  Points  and  Point  Coupes  ;  even  French  laces  were  not 
allowed  of  more  than  one  inch  in 
width,  and  lace  collars  and  cuffs 
were  to  be  worn  only  for  one 
year  after  the  issue  of  the  edict  ; 
after  that  time  they  were  to  be 
of  linen  trimmed  with  lace  not 
exceeding  one  inch  in  width. 

From  the  time  of  the  mar- 
riage of  Louis  XIV.  with  the 
Infanta,  Spanish  laces,  out  of 
compliment  to  the  Spanish  prin- 
cess, increased  in  popularity  and 
were  considered  most  recherche 
when  worn  over  rich  gowns  of 
silver  or  gold  brocade. 

Then  followed  more  edicts 
prohibiting  the  use  of  foreign 
laces,  before  Colbert  adopted  the 
scheme  for  securing  for  France 
the  large  sums  disbursed  by  the 
lace-wearers.  Selecting  some  of 
the  best  workers  of  Italy  and 
Flanders,  he  established  a  lace 
factory  at  Lonray,  at  Alen9on, 
appointing  a  manager  who  knew 
the  Venetian  method  of  lace- 
making  ;  and  under  her  thirty 
forewomen,  who  had  been  brought 
from  Venice.  The  work  executed 
delighted  the  King  and  his  courtiers,  who  declared  the  Alen9on  specimens  to  be 
superior  to  those  of  Venice.  A  large  sum  of  money  was  given  to  Madame  Gilbert, 
the  manager,  and  the  lace  received  the  name  of  Point  de  France.  In  1665  the 
manufacture  of  it  was  founded  on  a  princely  scale,  and  a  grant  of  36,000  francs  was 
made,  together  with  an  exclusive  privilege  for  ten  years.  The  decree,  dated 
August,  1665,  ordained  "that  there  shall  be  established  at  Guesney,  Arras, 
Rheims,  Sedan,  Chateau- Thierry,  Loudun,  Alen9on,  Aurillac,  etc.,  manufactures 
of  all  kind  of  works  with  thread,  either  with  needle  or  upon  pillow,  like  those  made 
in  Venice,  Genoa,  Ragusa,  and  they  will  be  called  Points  de  France." 


Portrait  by  Sir  Godfrey  Kneller,  showing  the  lace 
head-dress  called  the  Fontange,  after  the  favourite 
of  the  French  king,  who  initiated  the  fashion. 
Point  de  France,  showing  the  Venetian  influence, 
is  the  kind  of  lace  used. 


SE  YEN  TEEN  TH     CEN  T  UR  Y. 


29 


Other  factories  were  set  up  at  Argentan  and  the  Chateau  de  Madrid.  At  the 
latter  the  best  work  was  executed,  for  the  most  famous  artists  designed  the  graceful 
patterns  ;  it  was  this  factory  that  was  patronised  by  the  Royal  household. 

Not  only  were  foreign  laces  forbidden,  but  a  special  decree  forbade  "  the 
production,  sale,  or  use  of  any  kind  of  thread  point  laces  made  with  the  needle, 
whether  old  or  modern,  except  those  made  in  the  Royal  manufactories."  French 
characteristics  began  to  show  themselves  at  the  different  factories,  and  the  laces 

which  had  begun  by  being  copies 
of  the  Venice  Point,  and  had 
been  called  collectively  Point  de 
France,  were  soon  distinguished 
by  their  different  characteristics 
as  Aleneon,  Argentan,  etc. 

It  was  during  the  reign  of 
Louis  XIV.  that  the  Edict  of 
Nantes  was  revoked,  and  this 
had  such  a  disastrous  effect  on 
the  French  lace  industry  and 
assisted  to  such  a  vast  extent  in 
spreading  the  knowledge  of  lace- 
making  in  all  the  capitals  of 
Europe  where  there  was  religious 
toleration,  that  it  may  be  con- 
sidered the  act  of  legislation 
which  has  had  the  most  im- 
portant influence  of  any  on  the 
history  of  lace.  Through  it 
France  lost  500,000  of  her  best 
citizens,  and  it  is  said  that  when 
Louis  XV.  asked  Frederick  the 
Great  what  he  could  do  for 
him  to  show  his  gratitude,  the 
German  sovereign  asked  for  "  A 
second  revocation  of  the  Edict 
of  Nantes,"  doubtless  remem- 
bering that  before  the  influx  of 
French  emigrants,  Berlin  had 
only  15,000  inhabitants,  and  that 
its  silk,  lace  and  other  industries  were  practically  non-existent. 

When  Louis  XIV.  became  so  zealous  for  the  welfare  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church,  under  the  influence  of  Madame  de  Maintenon  and  his  confessor,  the  Jesuit 
father  La  Chaise,  all  the  chief  manufactures  were  in  the  hands  of  the  Protestants. 
It  is  difficult  to  account  for  this  fact  except  that  it  was  then  a  dogma  in  the  Roman 
Catholic  Church  that  profit  on  a  loan  was  usury  and  undesirable.  The  Huguenots 
held  no  such  opinion,  so  that  mortgages,  borrowed  capital  and  other  means  for 
extending  trade  were  freely  used  by  them  with  excellent  result.  The  persecutions, 


Jean  Baptiste  Colbert,  Minister  of  Louis  XIV. ,  who 
established  the  great  lace  factories  at  Aleneon 
and  elsewhere,  with  a  view  to  keeping  in  France 
the  fortunes  spent  by  the  courtiers  on  Venetian 
and  Flemish  laces.  He  wears  a  falling  collar  of 
Point  de  France. 


The  revoca- 
tion of  the 
Edict  of 
Nantes 
spread  the 
knowledge  of 
lace '  making 
throughout 
Europe. 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


imprisoning,  forfeiture  of  estates  and  other  penalties  soon  drove  all  these  worthy 
citizens,  together  with  their  riches  and  industrial  capacity,  into  other  countries, 
where  their  religious  views  were  tolerated. 

Tours  lost  her  ribbon  factories,  the  number  of  looms  falling  from  8,000  to  200, 
In  Lyons  the  weavers  were  reduced  from  18,000  to  4,000,  and  nearly  the  whole  of 
her  trade  in  gold  and  silver  laces,  which  was  valued  at  four  million  francs  yearly, 
was  transferred  to  Genoa.  Fifty  thousand  workmen  took  refuge  in  England, 
Flanders,  Germany,  and  Switzerland,  bringing  with  them  their  trade  secrets  and 
establishing  factories,  from  which  France  would  henceforth  be  compelled  to  buy 
her  supplies  instead  of  being  in  the 
position  to  supply  the  world.  From 
Alen9on  the  skilled  workmen  took 
their  trade  with  them  to  the  North. 
London  received  the  silk  weavers 
from  Lyons  at  Spitalfields. 

The  lace  industry  of  France 
suffered  terribly,  and  after  leading 
the  world  during  the  brilliant  Colbert 
period  in  the  manufacture  of  the 
finest  needle-point  laces,  produced 
only  the  cheaper  and  more  easily 
made  varieties,  the  best  kinds  being 
imported  from  Venice  and  Flanders. 

The  driving  into  exile  of  her 
most  skilful  workers  was  not  the 
only  reason  for  the  decline  of  the 
Alen9on  factories.  At  this  time  the 
original  Point  de  Veni?e  designs 
were  neglected,  and  lace  was  no 
longer  made  raised  in  relief,  with 
the  result  that  richness  in  effect  was 
lost,  and  the  pure  outlines  and 
delicate  arabesques  shrank  and 

,     .     ,.     ,             .,  ,         r-       1                       r  Andre   le   Notre,    Chevalier   of  the  order  of    St. 

dwindled    until  the    final    Stage    of  Michael,  Councillor  of  the  King  (Louis  XIV.), 

rWaHpnrp      thp  HnttpH     <;tv1p      wa<;  Controller  General  of  His  Majesty's  Gardens, 

C6»    t  Style>    WaS  Arts  and  Manufactories  of  France.     He  wears 

reached.  sleeve  ruffles  and  cravat  of  richest  Point  de 

,-,    -M  j.    ,             j           j  France,  which  at  that  period   was  identical 

Colbert     was    distressed    and  with  Venetian  Point, 

uneasy  at  the  falling  away  of  the  • 

foreign  markets  from  purchasing  at  the  lace  factories  he  had  established  with  so 

much  care.     He  wrote  to  M.  de  St.  Andre,  then  French  Ambassador  in  Venice, 

charging  him  to  give  exact  information  of  the  laces  made  in  Venice  and  Burano— "  If 

they  are  made  in  as  large  quantities  as  in  former  times,  and  where  they  are  exported." 

France  no,  It  is  interesting  thus  to  see  that  the  Points  of  Venice  appropriated  by  France, 

longer  made   as  Point  de  France,  and  imitated  by  other  countries,  their  fame  being  clouded  by 

Point  de  "      unskilful  copies,  were  once  more  made  exclusively  in  Venice,  their  original  home. 

Venise.  It  is  doubtless  most  desirable  that  one  nation  should  imitate  what  is  beautifully 


SEVENTEENTH     CENTURY.  31 

created  by  another,  stamping  on  the  original  invention  some  special  character- 
istics, but  at  any  rate  in  the  case  of  Point  de  Venise,  Fate  seems  to  have  decided 
that  the  original  trade  should  return  to  the  city  which  gave  birth  to  the  type. 

After  rivalling  Venice  and  Genoa  in  all  industrial  arts  in  the  Middle  Ages, 
Belgium  had  suffered  through  the  persecution  of  her  skilled  workpeople  by  the 
Spanish  Government.  In  1620,  however,  the  new  activity  in  the  commerce  of  lace 


Henry,  Prince  of  Wales,  son  of  King  James  I.,  in  elaborate  collar 
trimmed  with  Punto  in  Aria  of  very  beautiful  design. 

revived  the  old  industry,  which  spread  from  Valenciennes,  then  a  town  of  Flanders, 
to  Antwerp,  Lille,  and  Bruges. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  Belgian  lace  industry  the  Gothic  and  Venetian 
styles  had  been  copied ;  later  on  the  Genoa  Guipures  were  adopted ;  and  finally  the 
Belgian  Point  de  Gaze  was  invented,  and  from  it  the  celebrated  Point  de  Bruxelles 
and  no  less  important  Applique. 

The  impetus  to  point  lace-making  in  the  seventeenth  century  benefited  the 
bobbin  lace  industry  indirectly,  for  those  who  could  not  afford  to  wear  needle-point 
must  needs  be  in  the  fashion  in  lace-wearing,  and  an  increased  demand  for  the 


32  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

cheaper  pillow  laces  sprang  up.  The  paintings  of  this  period,  the  portraits  by 
Rubens,  Van  Dyck,  and  Rembrandt,  the  figures  and  interiors  by  Watteau  and 
Fragonard,  the  engravings  of  Abraham  Bosse,  all  show  us  the  rich  profusion 
of  lace  worn  by  both  men  and  women  on  every  occasion,  whether  a  christening, 
a  wedding,  a  funeral,  or  one  of  the  fetes  of  that  brilliant  period. 

A  new  Nor  were  the  courtiers  the  only  wearers  of  Point   de   France.       In    1690  a 

fashion  in        passpojg;  was  demanded  to  allow  the  passing  through  of  laces  for  the  use  of  the 

introduced       officers  of  the  army,  and  one  of  the  most  popular  fashions  of  the  day  originated  on 

on  a  the   battlefield.       It   was   at    the   battle  of  Steinkirk,  in    1692,   that  the    officers 

suddenly  ordered  into  action,  having  no  time  to  arrange  their  lace  cravats  in  the 

elaborate  method   in    vogue   at    the    time,   knotted   them  hastily  and   drew  them 

through  a  button-hole.     The  fashion  originated  by  the  victorious  officers  became 

the  rage  for  both  men  and  women  in  France  and  England  for  half-a-century. 

With  the  century  died  the  fashion  of  wearing  the  high  head-dress  of  wired 
A  popular     /lace,  called  La  Fontange.    This  head-dress,  which  was  at  first  low  and  graceful,  was 
head-dress  r    originated  by  the  royal  favourite  whose  name  it  bears.      Her  hair  having  become 
result  of  an      disarranged  while  out  hunting,  she  bound  up  the  flowing  locks  with  her  lace  hand- 
accident,          kerchief.     Louis  XIV.  was  so  charmed  with  the  coiffure  that  he  desired  she  should 
appear  in  it  at  the  Court  ball  in  the  evening ;  after  that,  every  lady  who  desired  to 
court  royal  favour  appeared  with  a  head-dress  a  la  Fontange,  until  the  mode  became 
exaggerated  ;    wire  was  used  to  support  the  lace,  sermons  were  preached  about 
the  exaggeration  of  its  height,  and  Madame  la  Mode  tired  of  her  dainty  whim. 

In  England,  during  the  early  part  of  the  seventeenth  century,  the  ruff,  some- 
times with  double  tier,  delighted  the  Court  gallants  and  aroused  the  wrath  of  the 
preachers,  who  waxed  eloquent  against  the  vanity  of  "  the  popinjays  and  plaister  faced 
Jezebels."  Like  the  ruffs  worn  in  France  and  Italy  at  the  same  period,  they  were 
edged  with  elaborate  geometric  point,  and  Ben  Jonson  says,  in  the  time  of  James  I., 
that  "  men  thought  nothing  of  turning  four  or  five  hundred  acres  of  their  best  land 
into  two  or  three  trunks  of  apparel."  It  was  about  1600  that  the  fashion  for  saffron- 
tinted  lace  appeared  in  England,  and  the  Dean  of  Westminster  ordered  "  that  no 
man  or  woman  wearing  yellow  ruffs  be  admitted  to  the  Church."  Either  this 
order  discouraged  their  appearance,  or  the  fact  that  Mrs.  Turner,  the  inventor  of 
yellow  starch,  was  hanged  at  Tyburn  in  1615  for  the  Overbury  murder,  and 
thus  rendered  that  especial  tint  distasteful ;  at  any  rate  the  fashion  disappeared. 

The  French  mode  of  wearing  Flanders  and  Venice  points  held  sway  in  England, 
and  Lord  Bacon  wrote,  "  Our  English  dames  are  much  given  to  the  wearing  of 
costly  laces,  and  if  brought  from  Italy,  or  France,  or  Flanders,  they  are  in  much 
esteem."  In  1621  there  was  a  movement  set  on  foot  to  establish  an  office  "to  repress 
pride  by  levying  taxes  on  all  articles  of  luxury,"  and  in  1623  a  complaint  of  the  decay 
of  the  bone  lace  trade  caused  distress  in  Great  Marlow. 

Queen  Anne  of  Denmark  was  most  patriotic  in  her  taste,  and  purchased 
"Great  bone  lace  and  Little  bone  lace"  at  Winchester  and  Basing;  the  lace  for 
the  layette  of  the  Princess  Sophia  cost  ^"614  55.  8d. 

Cut-work  was  still  a  favourite  in  England  for  the  trimming  of  the  falling 
collars  which  came  in  when  ruffs  went  out  of  fashion,  and  Medicis  collars  were 
worn  as  at  the  Court  of  France.  At  the  death  of  Queen  Anne,  wife  of  James  I. 


Bobbin  -  made     Brussels      Lace      Flounce,      26      inches     wide,      late     seventeenth     century.         Given     by 
M.    de     Maintenon     to    Francois    de     Salignac     de     la     Mothe     Fenelon,     consecrated     Archbishop     of 

C. i  MI  hi. i  i    in    1605. 


Seventeenth -century  Point   de  France,   showing  tht  Venetian  influence.       The 
figures  are  characteristic  of   this  period. 


SEVENTEENTH     CENTURY.  33 

in  1619,  a  large  veil  was  used  to  drape  the  hearse,  with  "peak  lace  wired,  and  lawn  Lace  used 
curiously  cut  in  flowers."  at  a  Royal 

Though  Charles  I.  is  occasionally  represented  in  a  ruff  during  the  early  years  ' 
of  his  reign,  the  fashion  practically  died  with  King  James  I.,  being  superseded  by  the 
fall  of  lace-trimmed  linen  ;  but  extravagance  was  shown  even  in  the  less  elaborate 
neck  wear,  and  in  1633  the  bills  for  the  King's  lace  and  linen  amounted  to  ^"15,000 
for  the  year.  As  there  was  little  of  this  money  paid  for  foreign  lace,  it  may  be 
inferred  that  the  making  of  English  laces  had  become  an  important  industry. 
Much  bone  lace  and  point  lace  was  made  in  England,  besides  that  of  the  more 
costly  gold  and  silver  thread. 

Henrietta  Maria  gave  lace  as  a  present  to  her  sister-in-law,  Anne  of  Austria, 
and  the  Countess  of  Leicester  ordered  lace  to  be  sent  to  her  in  France,  "fine  bone 
lace  of  English  make  "  ;  this  would  be  the  beautiful  Point  d'Angleterre,  which  is 
erroneously  supposed  to  have  originated  in  Belgium,  and  to  have  been  chiefly  made 
there.  The  fact  that  shoe  rosettes  were  worn  in  England  at  this  time  with  the 
same  extravagance  as  at  the  French  court  inspired  the  epigram — 

"Wear  a  farm  in  shoe-strings  edged  with  gold, 
And  spangled  garters  worth  a  copyhold." 

The  fall  of  Charles  I.  and  the  rule  of  the  Puritans  had  less  disastrous  effect  on 
the  lace  trade  than  one  would  expect.  It  is  true  that  less  cheap  bone  lace  was 
required  for  the  middle  classes,  and  the  bravery  and  junketings  of  the  lower  classes 
were  sternly  repressed,  but  the  ladies  of  the  noble  and  aristocratic  families  had 
little  liking  for  the  simple  Roundhead  dress.  Silver  lace  ornamented  the  buff  coats 
of  the  men ;  falling  collars  of  Flanders  lace  and  English  point  laces  half-hid  the 
armour  worn  beneath.  Nor  did  the  foreign  ambassadors  of  the  Puritan  govern- 
ment think  it  necessary  to  appear  in  less  ornate  garments  or  less  costly  stuffs. 
Even  the  members  of  Cromwell's  own  family  used  costly  lace  to  a  considerable  Cromwell's 
extent,  and  on  the  death  of  the  Protector  his  body  was  more  richly  draped  with  family  used 
velvet,  ermine,  and  Flanders  lace  than  had  any  monarch's  been  before  in  England. 
It  is  likely  that  the  simplicity  so  much  talked  of  at  this  period  was  more  a  party 
cry  and  a  concession  to  the  spirit  of  reaction,  than  a  practical  rule  carried  out  to 
the  letter. 

At  the  Restoration  the  wearing  of  lace  resumed  the  old  place  in  the  affections 
of  the  people,  from  which  it  had  never  really  been  ousted;  and  while  fresh 
proclamations  were  issued  by  Charles  II.  against  the  entry  of  foreign  lace,  he  himself 
continued  to  buy  Flanders  lace,  and,  as  Pepys  tells  in  his  delightfully  gossiping 
diary,  other  people  did  likewise.  "  My  wife  and  I  to  my  Lord's  lodging,  where  she 
and  I  stayed,  walking  in  Whitehall  gardens,  and  in  the  Privy  garden  saw  the  finest 
smocks  and  linen  petticoats  of  Lady  Castlemaine's,  laced  with  rich  lace  at  the 
bottom,  that  ever  I  saw,  and  it  did  me  good  to  look  at  them." 

The  change  of  fashion  in  men's  hairdressing  brought  about  the  extinction  of 
the  falling  lace  collar,  for  the  flowing  wig  and  long  cuds*  hid  the  back  and  shoulder 
portions  of  the  lace.     This  accounts  for  the  introduction  of  the  lace  cravat  of  this  Lace  cravats 
period.     Aprons,  pinners  and  handkerchiefs  of  lace   .vere  immensely  popular  with  succeeded 
the  ladies.     With  the  end  of  the  century  the  fashion  of  the  head-dress  a  la  Fontange,  collars. 


34  HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

called  a  commode  in  England,  was  at  its  height,  and  never  had  such  sums  been 
spent  on  lace  in  England  as  were  disbursed  during  the  reign  of  William  and 
Mary.  The  industry  throve  in  Bedfordshire,  Buckinghamshire,  Devonshire  and  all 
the  other  lace-making  districts  in  England.  Defoe,  a  few  years  later,  wrote  that 
•'  Thro'  the  whole  south  part  of  Bedfordshire  the  people  are  taken  up  with  the 
manufacture  of  bone  lace,  in  which  they  are  wonderfully  exercised  and  improved 


George  Digby,  Earl  of  Bristol  (1612-1677).  The  deep  turn-down  collar 
characteristic  of  the  Stewart  period  was  soon  to  be  replaced  by 
lace  cravats,  when,  the  hair  being  worn  longer  and  more  over 
the  shoulders,  elaborate  ornament  was  needed  only  in  front. 

within  these  few  years  past."  Devonshire  was  kept  busy  with  the  demand  for  her 
Point  d'Angleterre  laces,  and  at  Honiton  the  three  celebrated  lace-makers  of  the 
seventeenth  century  flourished,  namely  :  James  Rodge,  Mrs.  Minifie,  the  daughter 
of  the  Vicar  of  Buckrell,  near  Honiton,  and  Humphrey  of  Honiton,  whose  records 
of  bequests  to  the  townspeople  are  preserved  on  a  board  at  the  west  end  of  the 
parish  church  at  the  present  day. 

In   the   seventeenth  century   we   know   that    the   lace    industry   of    England 
flourished,  and  some  traces  may  be  found  of  small  centres  having  existed  before 


SEVENTEENTH     CENTURY. 


35 


that  time,  but  English  portraits  are  searched  in  vain  for  traces  of  characteristic 
native-made  laces  earlier  than  about  1603,  nor  is  there  any  mention  of  the  existence 
of  either  a  bobbin  or  a  needle-point  factory. 

It  is  probable  that,  during  the  reign  of  Elizabeth,  the  close  intercourse  between 
the  Courts  of  France  and  England  gave  ample  opportunity  for  the  exchange  of  ideas 
and  models  in  what  was  then  a  favourite  pastime,  and  a  proof  of  the  knowledge  in 
England  of  some  of  the  well-known  lace  patterns  is  shown  in  the  book  published  in 


"The  Foolish  Virgins,"  by  Abraham  Bosse.      The  flat  lace  collars  are  characteristic  of  the 
period.     This  is  one  of  the  first  pictures  in  which  lace-trimmed  handkerchiefs  appear. 

1605  by  Mr.  Mignerak,  an  Englishman,  which  contains  a  collection  of  well-known 
Point  Coupe  and  bobbin  lace  patterns.  This  proves  also  that  there  were  at  any 
rate  some  people  in  England  who  were  interested  in  the  English  lace  industry. 

It  is  likely  that  until  the  second    half  of  the  seventeenth  century  England 
produced  only  sufficient  lace  for  her  own  consumption,  for  it  is  not  until  that  time 
that   the  characteristic  Point   d'Angleterre  appears  in  wardrobe   lists,  periodical  f>he  lovely 
literature,  and   portraits  on   the   Continent  ;    but   after   1650  the    superiority  and   Point 
originality  of  the  English  lace  is  proved  by  the  large  export  abroad.     This,  how- 
ever,  is  due  to  England  alone  having  adapted  to  the  bobbin  lace  the  use  of  the  style 
created  in  needle-point  by  the  Venetian  artists,  and  we  agree  with  M.  Seguin  that 
the  deeply-rooted  idea  that  Point  d'Angleterre  originated  in  Belgium  is  erroneous 

As  early  as  1612  a  letter,  dated  January  2nd,  is  addressed  to  M.  de  Morangis, 
Prefect  of  Alenson,  in  which  it  is  said  :   "  As  the  young  ladies  are  now  clever  in 


D  2 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Point 

d'Angleterre 
originated  in 
England,  as 
its  name 
denotes. 


making  the  Point  de  France,  the  manufacturers  could  easily  introduce  in  their 
factories  the  work  of  Flanders  and  Point  d'Angleterre  ;  and  if  it  is  necessary  to  have 
some  skilled  workwomen  from  other  countries,  we  could  authorise  them  to  be  called." 
The  Point  d'Angleterre  undoubtedly  means,  in  this  case,  the  work  done  in  England. 
The  English  Point  d'Angleterre  was  exported  in  large  quantities  to  France,  and  was 
never  confounded  at  that  time  with  lace  made  in  Flanders.  Colbert,  for  whose 
information  the  letter  was  written,  would  be  the  last  to  confuse  the  two  makes  of  lace. 

In  1675,  Savory, 
in  "  Le  Parfait  Nego- 
ciant,"  declares  that 
"  there  is  a  large  im- 
portation from  Eng- 
land of  laces  of  silk 
and  linen  thread." 

Why  should  Bel- 

gium  invent  a  type  of 
,  ,        ,,   ..    ,-,  .    , 

lace  and  call  it  Point 

d'Angleterre  ?  This 
especial  kind  of  lace 
existed  long  before  the 
excessive  demand  for  it 
in  the  time  of  Charles 
II.  necessitated  Bel- 
gian lace  being  smug- 
gled into  England 
under  that  name.  It 
is  probable,  however, 
that  the  fact  that  in 
the  latter  part  of  the 
seventeenth  century 
the  demand  did  exceed 
the  English  supply, 
has  given  rise  to  the 
belief  that  Belgian  so- 
called  Point  d'Angle- 
terre was  the  model 
for  the  English-made 
Point  d'Angleterre, 
instead  of  the  reverse  being  the  case.  And  this  History  of  Lace  will  not  have 
been  written  in  vain  if  we  make  it  clear  that  England  was  the  first  to  make 
the  beautiful  lace  called  Point  d'Angleterre.  The  industry  still  exists  in 
Devonshire,  where  Honiton  point  absolutely  represents  the  Point  'd  Angleterre 
of  the  seventeenth  century  ;  the  only  difference  being  in  the  poverty  of  the  present 
designs.  If  artistic  direction  were  given  to  the  designing  management,  there  is  no 
reason  why  Point  d'Angleterre  should  not  again  attain  to  its  old  beauty, 


George  Savile,  Marquis  of  Halifax  (1633-1695).  He  wears  the 
folded  cravat  of  Flemish  lace,  which  replaced  the  deep 
lace  collar  when  flowing  wigs  came  in — hiding  the  lace 
trimming  at  the  back. 


Portrait  of  Mademoiselle  de  Beaujolas.  From  the  picture  by  Nattier  (1685—1766),  at  the 
Musee  at  Versailles.  Taken  from  a  photograph  by  Neurdein.  The  lace  apron  and 
dress  trimming:  are  of  Point  d'Argentan. 


Busts  of  Louis  XVI.  of  France  (in  Point  d'Alen^on  Lace  cravat)  and  his  wife  Marie  Antoinette, 
daughter  of  Maria  Theresa  of  Austria  (in  Point  d'Alen^on  corsage  drapery). 

CHAPTER     IV. 

ANECDOTAL  HISTORY  OF  LACE  IN  THE  EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY. 


OI  the  limes.  The  eighteenth  century  icas  a  time  of  great  naval  activity  for 
England.  Nelson  and  Howe  flourished.  The  A  merican  War  took  place  in  1783.  Fox  and  Pitt  guided  the 
policy  of  the  Kingdom,  and  the  South  Sea  Bubble  taking  place  in  the  first  half  of  the  century,  gave  rise 
to  reckless  expenditure.  In  France  the  war  of  Spanish  Succession  drained  the  resources  of_  the.  country 
early  in  the  century.  The  Seven  Years'  War  took  place  and  the  Jesuits  were  expelled.  The  splendour 
and  extravagance  of  the  Court  of  Louis  XVI.  suffered  total  eclipse  at  the  Revolution,  which  had  f^S 
disastrous  results  on  the  lace-making  industry  ;  in  fact,  at  this  time,  it  received  a  bloiv  from  which  ij  /" 
has  never  recovered,  notwithstanding  Napoleon's  efforts  to  revive  the  art.  Literature  and  Science  were 
represented  in  Great  Britain  by  Pope,  Thomson,  Cowper,  Burns,  Grey,  Steele,  Addison,  Congreve, 
Defoe,  Sterne,  Goldsmith,  Johnson,  Newton,  Wesley,  Franklin,  and  Blackstone.  In  France,  by  Voltaire, 
Rousseau,  Diderot,  Le  Sage,  Montesquieu,  Buffon,  La  Voisier,  and  La  Grange.  In  Italy,  by  Goldoni, 
Alfieri,  Muratori,  Morga'gne,  Cassini.  Galvani,  and  Volta.  In  Germany,  by  Zimmermann,  Goethe, 
Schiller,  Kant,  and  Hoffmann.  This  was  the  century  when  the  great  German  musicians  flourished, 
Handel,  Mozart,  Haydn,  Beethoven,  and  Weber.  In  Art,  Hogarth,  Sir  Joshua  Reynolds  and  Gains- 
borough showed  the  grace  of  English  women  draped  in  muslin,  rather  than  lace.  Greuze  and  Vernet 
painted  French  portraits,  and  in  Italy  Lutti  and  Battoni  upheld  the  traditions  of  the  Italian  School. 

AT  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  and  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century, 
every   kind  .  of    fine    lace    was    used    in    France  —  Point   d'Angleterre, 
originally   made   in    England    but   imitated   in    Flanders    and    also    in 
France,   being  as   popular  as   Argentan   and   Alen9on  ;    Mechlin   being 
prized  for  its  lightness  ;  and  blonde  lace  having  recently  appeared  from  Spain. 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


ChantiJly 
lace  was 
first  made 
with  flax 
thread. 


It  was  at  this  time  that  the  making  of  silk  laces  increased  considerably.  Black 
silk  guipure  had  been  worn,  more  or  less  under  protest,  out  of  compliment  to 
Louis  XIV. 's  Spanish  consort,  for  the  graceful  taste  of  the  Parisian  did  not  find 
pleasure  in  black  silk  lace.  In  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century  the  Chantilly 
industry  was  begun,  at  first  with  thread,  afterwards  with  silk  laces.  This  trade 
did  not  really  flourish,  however,  until  blonde  laces  became  the  rage  in  Paris. 

During  the  time  of  the  third  Napoleon 
blonde  lace  was  the  favourite  wear  of 
the  Empress  Eugenie,  who  delighted  in 
its  transparent  brilliance,  and  did  not  see 
the  lack  of  artistic  design. 

The  equipage  de  bain  formed  one  of 
the  most  important  items  in  the  toilette 
accessories  of  the  woman  of  fashion.  In 
the  eighteenth  century  the  finest  Point  de 
France  was  used  not  only  for  the  trim- 
ming of  the  loose  dressing,  gown  of 
madame,  but  also  for  a  broad  flounce 
which  was  set  on  round  the  bath  ;  the 
towels  and  stout  linen  for  stepping  out 
upon  were  all  trimmed  with  costly  point. 
In  Madame  Dubarry's  accounts,  Point 
d'Argentan  and  Point  .eUAngleterre  ap- 
pear for  such  trimming. 

The  bed  trimmings  were  also  of  the 
most  costly  nature.  It  must  be  re- 
membered that  at  this  time  the  reveille, 
or  uprising,  was  a  favourite  time  for  the 
reception  of  friends,  and  the  counterpane, 
lace-trimmed  pillow  cases,  sheets  and 
curtains  were  utilised  as  a  means  of 
displaying  costly  points — a  coverlet  made 
of  Point  de  Venise  in  one  piece,  worth 
many  hundreds  of  crowns,  being  no  un- 
common sight.  The  bed  garnitures  of  the 
Queen  of  France  were  renewed  every 
year,  Madame  de  Luignes  receiving  the 
old  ones  as  her  perquisite.  Henry 

Swinburne,  writing  from  Paris  in  1786,  says  that  the  expense  of  a  bride's 
trousseau  is  equal  to  a  handsome  portion  in  England.  "  Five  thousand 
pounds'  worth  of  lace,  linen,  etc.,  is  a  common  thing  among  them." 

In  one  of  the  pictures  of  M.  de  Bonnard  at  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale,  a 
dressing-room  is  shown  furnished  with  a  sumptuous  display  of  laces.  The 
toilet  table  has  a  cover  trimmed  with  a  flounce  of  needle-point ;  a  Venetian 
mirror  has  a  pair  of  guipure  lace  curtains  draped  on  either  side  of  it.  The 


Mantilla  worn  by  a  lady  of  Madrid.  This 
head  -  covering  is  still  much  used  in 
Spain,  though  it  is  no  longer  the  uni- 
versal headwear  of  every  class  as  it 
was  in  the  eighteenth  century. 


EIGHTEENTH     CENTURY.  39 

dressing-gown  of  the  lady  is  all  of  guipure,  trimmed  at  the  sides,  where  it 
opens  over  a  petticoat  ;  rich  Point  de  France  edges  the  sleeves  and  at  the 
bottom  of  the  gown  is  a  wide  flounce  of  Point  de  France.  At  the  back  of 
the  washing-stand  a  deep  flounce  of  the  same  lace  is  draped,  forming  a  back- 
ground for  the  carafes  and  basins. 


George  Washington,  President  of  the  United  States  (1732 — 
1799).  He  wears  the  lace  cravat  and  sleeve  ruffles  of  the 
period. 

The   eighteenth   century  was   the   age  of  ruffles  and  jabots ;    fortunes  were  Fortunes 

spent   on   them,    and   many   are   the  jokes   in   the   literature   of   the   day   at   the  ™"fUlfa£ 

expense   of  those   who   had   lace   ruffles   but   no   shirts.      The   lace   was   always  and  jabots, 
separate    and    was    stitched    on.      It    is    said    that    the    falling    ruffles    of    lace 


40  HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

worn  over  the  hands  by  every  man  of  fashion  were  first  used  by  card  sharpers 
and  the  throwers  of  dice,  who  wished  to  manipulate  the  games,  and  found 
the  full  lace  flounce  a  convenient  veil. 

Jabots  and  falls  of  lace  for  the  wrist  were  the  usual  present  from  the 
betrothed  to  her  fiance,  and  the  sums  spent  on  single  specimens  in  point  or 
Valenciennes  would  surprise  those  who  speak  of  the  extravagance  of  the  present 
day.  The  number  required  by  the  dandies  of  the  period  appears  enormous; 
the  Archbishop  of  Cambrai  possessed  forty-eight  pairs  of  ruffles  of  Mechlin, 
Point  de  France,  and  Valenciennes ;  this  latter  lace  was  usually  worn  at 
night.  The  year  before  he  died,  Louis  XVI.  had  fifty-nine  pairs  of  new  lace 
ruffles,  twenty-eight  of  point,  twenty-one  of  Valenciennes,  and  ten  of  Point 
d'Angleterre. 

Fine  lace  The  fashion  in  lace-wearing  was  not  confined  to  the  nobility  :    the   lacqueys 

frills  formed  in  the  eighteenth  century  had  rich  lace  ruffles  as  part  of  their  livery,  both  in 
the  men-  England  and  all  over  the  Continent.  Queen  Anne  had  her  servants  regularly 
servants'  inspected  that  it  might  be  seen  if  their  ruffles  were  clean  and  their  periwigs 
livery.  dressed;  and  in  a  contemporary  journal  it  is  stated  that  "roast  beef  is  banished 

downstairs  because  the  powdered  footmen  will  not  touch  it  for  fear  of  daubing 
their  lace  ruffles."  At  the  beginning  of  the  century,  the  English  Parliament  passed 
an  Act  for  preventing  the  importation  of  foreign  bone  lace,  needle-point,  and  cut- 
work,  imposing  a  duty  of  2os.  per  yard.  The  Government  of  Flanders  retaliated 
by  prohibiting  the  importation  of  English  woollen  goods  ;  this  caused  such  distress 
amongst  the  wool  carders,  dyers,  and  weavers  that  the  prohibition  of  foreign  lace 
was  removed,  and  more  of  it  was  worn  than  ever,  the  lace  bill  of  Queen  Mary  of 
England  amounting  to  nearly  ^"2,000,  and  that  of  her  royal  spouse  to  ^"2,459,  in 
the  same  year. 

At  this  time  the  English  laces  were  becoming  more  elaborate  and  costly. 
Defoe  writes  of  Blandford  point  costing  £30  per  yard.  This  lace  was  much  used 
for  trimming  the  steinkirks,  which  form  of  cravat,  originating  in  France,  was 
extremely  popular  in  England  for  many  years.  The  lace-making  area  of  this 
country  was  very  much  wider  in  extent  in  the  eighteenth  century  than  it  is 
now;  it  extended  throughout  Cambridgeshire,  Northamptonshire,  Hertfordshire, 
Buckinghamshire,  Bedfordshire,  Oxfordshire,  Wiltshire,  Somerset,  Hampshire, 
Dorset,  Devon,  and  as  far  as  Launceston  in  Cornwall.  Point  lace  was  worked 
at  this  time  by  the  upper  classes  all  over  England :  they  learnt  the  art  in 
France,  where  so  many  girls  amongst  the  upper  middle  classes  were  educated 
in  the  eighteenth  century.  This  lace  was  generally  worked  by  the  wearer  for 
her  own  use  and  was  never  an  article  of  commercial  value.  In  1775  an  institution 
was  founded  by  Queen  Charlotte  in  London  "  for  employing  the  female  infants 
of  the  poor  in  the  blonde  and  black  silk  lace  making  and  thread  laces."  This 
appears  to  have  been  successful  for  a  time,  having  been  bolstered  up  by  the 
purchase  by  subscribers  in  London  of  the  produce  of  the  school. 

Queen  Anne  was  scarcely  patriotic  in  her  tastes,  wearing  Flanders  point  at 
her  coronation.  The  laces  of  Brussels  and  Mechlin  were  always  her  favourites, 
over  one  thousand  pounds  being  paid  in  one  year  for  the  furnishing  of  these 


EIGHTEENTH     CENTURY.  41 

laces  alone.  She,  however,  did  not  desire  the  importation  of  lace  made  in  the 
dominions  of  the  French  king,  and  in  1711  forbade  the  entry  of  gold  and  silver 
lace  on  account  of  the  extravagance  to  which  its  wear  gave  rise,  even  the 
corsets  of  the  ladies  at  this  time  being  trimmed  with  the  forbidden  fabric. 
Spanish  point  in  gold  or  silver  was  preferred  for  state  occasions  for  dress  and 
mantle  trimming,  thread  lace  being  always  used  for  "heads"  and  lappets. 


Joseph  Marie  Terray.  From  a  picture  by  Eoslin. 
The  magnificent  lace  alb  worn  by  this  prelate  is 
of  Point  de  Flandre. 

Before  the  South  Sea  Bubble  burst,  two  companies  had  been  brought  out  with 
enormous  capital  for  importing  lace  from  Holland,  and  when  the  china  craze  of  the 
eighteenth  century  was  at  the  height  of  its  popularity,  many  a  Flanders  "head" 
and  flounce  was  exchanged  for  a  punch  bowl  or  nodding  mandarin. 

When  George  I.  came  to  the  throne  lace  continued  to  be  worn  as  much  as  ever  ; 
the  ruffles  were  longer  and  the  cravats  of  exaggerated  length.  "  Weeping  ruffles  " 
are  responsible  for  the  passing  of  many  a  clandestine  note  between  lovers  and 


Enormous 
capital  was 
supplied 
for  importing 
lace  at  the 
time  of  the 
South  Sea 
Bubble. 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE     LACE. 


Spanish 
mantillas 
were  finest 
in  the  i8th 
century. 


Jacobites,  and  the  discussion  of  the  prices  of  foreign  lace  and  criticism  of  ruffles 
seems  to  have  taken  the  place  of  the  modern  substitute — the  weather — in  the 
conversation  of  intimates. 

The  extent  to  which  the  men  and  women  ran  up  lace  bills  was  enormous.  The 
distress  of  lace  sellers  at  this  time,  which  should  have  been  so  prosperous  for 
them,  was  very  great,  and  constant  bankruptcies  of  "  lace  men  "  are  recorded.  In 
the  Connoisseur,  a.  journal  of  the  period,  the  reckless  extravagance  of  the  women 
is  commented  upon,  and  a  little  incident  described.  "  The  lady  played  till  all  her 
ready  money  was  gone  ;  staked  her  cap  and  lost  it,  afterwards  her  handkerchief. 
He  then  staked  both  cap  and  handkerchief  against  her  tucker,  which  to  his  pique 
she  gained." 

With  regard  to  the  laces  of  Italy  at  this  period,  the  Venetian  Point  was  still 
being  made  in  considerable  quantities ;  its  style  had  never  been  lovelier,  for  though 
the  workmanship  was  lighter,  it  was  not  less  ornate.  The  demand  for  thinner 
laces  had  altered  the  designs  of  Point  de  Venise,  which  was  approaching  the  seme 
method,  small  sprigs  taking  the  place  of  arabesques. 

Argentan  lace  was  made  at  Burano,  and  at  the  latter  place  the  characteristic 
Burano  Point  was  at  its  finest  ;  it  is  to  this  period  that  some  of  the  most  beautiful 
specimens  of  this  graceful  and  lovely  needle-point  lace  belong.  Its  tint  is  always 
a  deep  coffee  colour  on  account  of  the  human  contact ;  for  so  laborious  is  its  making 
that  a  long  time  must  be  spent  by  the  worker  in  achieving  the  rows  of  finest 
stitching,  and  accomplishing  the  effective  net  ground  by  hand. 

The  making  of  bobbin  lace  was  already  a  thriving  industry  in  Pelestrina, 
another  of  the  group  of  islands  of  which  Venice  is  one,  and  at  Chioggia  also 
considerable  quantities  of  lace  were  being  made  in  the  eighteenth  century.  This 
lace  is  made  with  bobbins',  and  resembles  Mechlin  lace  to  a  certain  extent  ;  the 
execution,  however,  is  coarser,  with  the  result  that  Chioggia  lace  is  much 
stronger  than  the  Belgian  variety.  The  Italian  designs  are  infinitely  more  artistic. 

The  eighteenth  century  was  the  best  period  for  lace  made  especially  in  the 
form  of  mantillas.  Neither  before  nor  since  has  the  national  Spanish  head-dress 
been  so  universally  worn  as  at  that  time  ;  peasant  women,  the  upper  and  lower 
middle  classes,  the  aristocracy  and  royalty  all  used  lace  for  their  head-covering 
on  every  occasion,  the  quality  of  the  fabric  varying  with  the  rank  and  means  of 
the  wearer,  though  sometimes  mantillas  of  extremely  rich  lace  were  possessed  by 
those  whose  poverty  with  regard  to  the  necessities  of  life  showed  the  contrast 
in  a  striking  manner.  Black  lace  was  the  most  generally  worn,  but  white 
mantillas  were  sometimes  de  vigueur,  and  are  still  for  special  court  ceremonies. 

The  three  deep  flounces  of  black  lace  stitched  on  the  coloured  skirt  gave 
ample  opportunity  for  the  fabrication  of  handsome  Point  d'Espagne,  this  being 
also  a  part  of  the  Spanish  national  dress  much  more  worn  in  the  eighteenth 
century  than  at  the  present  day  ;  in  fact,  the  dress  now  worn  in  a  few  remote 
villages  is  a  survival  of  what  was  then  the  rule,  both  with  men  and  with 
women,  even  the  three-cornered  hat,  which  was  then  in  vogue  with  all  classes, 
being  still  occasionally  to  be  seen.  The  sleeves  of  the  women's  dresses  were 
trimmed  with  Point  d'Espagne. 


EIGHTEENTH     CENTURY. 


43 


In  Belgium,  Point  de  Gaze  and  Application  both  of  needle-point  and  bobbin- 
made  sprigs,  were  much  made.  A  new  development  of  this  latter  variety  of  lace 
was  just  beginning ;  this  was  the  Duchesse  lace,  in  which  handsome  bobbin-made 
sprigs  are  made  separately,  being  joined  afterwards  by  means  of  bobbin-made 
brides  or  bars.  The  Italian  lace  which  most  resembles  Point  Duchesse  is  the 
Mosaic  lace  of  the  present  day,  but  smaller  sections  and  sprigs  serve  to  build  up 

the  pattern,  which  is  sometimes 
enriched  with  medallions  of 
needle-point. 

There  was  much  etiquette 
with  regard  to  the  wearing  of 
lace  in  the  reign  of  George  II. ; 
it  was  so  general  at  court  that 
even  young  girls  before  mar- 
riage wore  lace  caps  and  ruffles. 
There  were  winter  and  sum- 
mer laces  :  Argentan  and 
Alen^on  were  amongst  the 
former ;  Mechlin,  Lille  and 
Blonde  the  favourites  for  sum- 
mer wear.  With  regard  to 
mourning,  black  and  white 
laces  were  worn  for  slight 
mourning,  but  none  was  per- 
missible when  deep  mourning 
was  worn.  Brussels  lace  was 
almost  invariably  the  kind 
worn  at  court  and  on  state 
occasions.  Fine  escaloped 
Brussels  laced  "heads"  with 
lappets,  hooked  up  with  dia- 
diamond  buttons,  were  the 
mode,  the  sleeve  ruffles  to 
match,  of  double  and  treble 
rows,  and  it  was  remarked 
that  "  the  Popish  nun  lace- 
makers  abroad  are  maintained 
by  the  Protestant  lace-wearers 
of  England."  Patriotism  was 
shown  in  a  marked  degree  in 
1736,  when  at  the  marriage  of 
Frederick,  Prince  of  Wales, 
all  the  lace  worn  was  of 

Harlequin's   Dress,    richly   trimmed   with  gold  English      manufacture      except 

lace    and    galloon  ;      eighteenth    century.  t       ,        r     fu         F)uke     of     Marl- 
Taken  from   a  photograph  of  the  original 

dress   in  the  Correo  Museum,    Venice.  borough,       who       wore       Point 


There  were 

winter 

and  summer 

laces. 


44 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


The  lace 

apron 

disappears. 


d'Espagne.  Soon  after,  the  Anti-Gallican  Society  was  founded  to  correct  the 
taste  for  foreign  manufactures  and  to  distribute  prizes  for  bone  point  lace  and 
other  English-made  fabrics.  This  society  did  excellent  work  in  fostering  the 
artistic  beauty  of  English  lace,  and  its  prizes  were  frequently  competed  for  by 
gentlewomen,  who  could  carry  out  designs  and  stitches  of  a  quality  and 
fineness  equal  to  the  convent-made  lace  abroad,  as  their  living  did  not 
entirely  depend  on  the  quick  execution  of  their  work. 

With  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century  in  England  the  lace  apron,  popular  since 
the  time  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  finally  disappeared,  together  with  the  mob  cap  pinned 
under  the  chin  ;  and  though  costly  point  was  still  worn,  blonde  lace  had  made  its 


Border  of  Bobbin-made  Trolly  Lace,  2  inches  wide.     Late  eighteenth  century. 

appearance,  and  with  its  novel,  light  effect,  charmed  the  ladies  who  were  ever  on  the 
look-out  "  for  what  new  whim  adorns  the  ruffle." 

All  the  efforts  of  George  III.  to  protect  English  manufactures  did  but  encourage 
the  smugglers ;  notwithstanding  royal  edicts  ladies  would  have  foreign  laces,  and  if 
others  could  not  smuggle  them,  they  themselves  were  always  ready  to  run  some 
risk  and  invent  some  ingenious  plan  for  evading  the  Customs  House  officers,  who 
were  not  only  busy  at  the  seaports  at  this  time,  but  frequently  raided  the  tailors' 
and  milliners'  shops  in  London,  their  finds  being  publicly  burnt. 

But  with  the  terrible  years  of  1792  and  1793  all  this  was  to  cease.  The  great 
lace-wearers  of  France,  the  nobility  and  aristocracy,  by  the  end  of  the  century  had 
either  been  sent  to  the  scaffold  or  were  miserable  refugees  in  foreign  countries, 
eking  out  a  living  by  giving  lessons  in  languages  and  dancing,  or  by  selling 
their  costly  laces,  if  they  had  been  so  fortunate  as  to  bring  them  i-  *'  '^ 
hurried  flight. 

Efforts  were  made  after  the  Revolution  (but  without  much  success)  to  re 
the  lace  industry  of  Argentan,  that  beautiful  lace  resembling  Alen9on,  but  0 

from  it,  with  its  characteristic  bride  picotee  ground,  the  six-sided  buttonhole  bar 
fringed  with  a  row  of  delicate  pearls  or  picots  round  each  side.  Pe—  '  Jon  to 
establish  a  factory  at  Argentan  was  refused  to  Madame  Malbiche  de  Luislannay ; 
possibly  it  was  thought  that  the  three  existing  factories  were  sufficient  to  supply  the 
small  demand. 


EIGHTEENTH     CENTURY. 


45 


With  Marie  Antoinette  fell  the  lace  trade  of  France,  and  for  a  decade  the  manu- 
facture, except  of  a  few  cheap  peasant  laces,  ceased  to  exist.  When  in  the  igth 
century  the  gradual  recovery  from  the  disastrous  effects  of  the  Revolution  began  to 
be  felt  at  least  a  dozen  of  once  thriving  centres  were  hopelessly  moribund  through 
the  death  and  dispersion  of  the  workers. 


Old   Chantilly  Lace    (reduced),  from  one  of  the  order-books  of 
the  time  of  Louia  XVI. 


Napoleon 
tried  to 
revive  the 
lace  industry 
in  France. 


Machine-made  Net.  Kun  and  Embroidered  in  Flax  Thread. 
Belgian,  early  nineteenth  century. 


CHAPTER  V. 

ANECDOTAL  HISTORY  OF   LACE  IN   THE   NINETEENTH 

CENTURY. 

Picture  Of  the  Times.  The  Legislative  Union  of  Ireland  with  Great  Britain 
in  1801  secured  commercial  privileges  for  the  former  country  on  the  Continent,  Early  in  the 
century  the  peace  of  Luneville  was  signed,  by  which  the  French  became  masters  of  all  Europe 
West  of  the  Rhine  and  South  of  the  Adige.  Trafalgar  was  fought,  but  the  allies  could  not  ivilhstand 
Napoleon's  generalship,  and  Auslerlitz  proved  disastrous  for  Austria.  The  Peninsular  W ar  look  place 
and  every  industry  suffered  front  lack  of  encouragement,  for  all  the  nations  of  Europe  seemed  involved 
in  devastation  and  bloodshed ;  and  though  England  preserved  her  commerce  in  consequence  of  her 
superior  navy,  the  National  Debt  ivas  augmented  to  the  enormous  sum  of  eight  hundred  and  sixty 
millions.  Great  strides  were  made  in  machinery  and  agriculture  and  the  im<cntion  of  the  bobbin  net  in 
1 809  had  disvtsfrovs  effects  on  the  hand-made  lace  industry.  In  1837  Ihejacquard  system  ivasajbttvdto 
the  bobbin  net  machine.  English  machines  ivere  smuggled  over  to  the  Continent,  un9  Cai^JaTIt^  * 

ilk 


President  in  1801  ;  Louisiana  was  purchased  in  1803;  Florida  was  acquired,  and  in  1898  America 
declared  war  ivith  Spain  on  account  of  the  latter  power's  misgovernment  at  Manilla.  For  France  the 
Peace  of  Amiens  was  signed  in  1802,  and  after  Napoleon's  defeat  at  Waterloo,  his  exile  and  death  took 
place.  In  1870,  the  disastrous  Franco-Prussian  war  paralysed  her  commerce  and  lost  her  the  fair 
provinces  of  Alsace  and  Lorraine.  In  1871  a  Republic  was  again  the  form  of  government,  and  there 
is  now  no  brilliant  French  Court  16*  encourage  the  lace  and  other  industries.  Italy's  unrest  culminated 
in  the  declaration  of  the  constitution  of  Italy  ;  Rome  was  made  the  capital.  The  most  brilliant  Italian 
names  of  the  century  are  those  of  Garibaldi,  Pius  IX.,  Cavour,  Denina,  and  in  art  Monti  and  Canova. 
Art  in  England  was  upheld  by  such  men  as  Sir  Thomas  Laivrence,  Turner.  Wilkie,  Chantrey, 
Lord  Leighton,  Millais  and  a  host  of  other  celebrated  men.  In  France  by  David,  Bouguereau,  Millet, 
Rosa  Bonheur,  &c.,  cSv.  Madame  de  Stael  delighted  ivith  her  writings.  In  England  Literature  and 
Science  boasted  such  men  as  Shelley,  Scott,  Byron,  Southey,  Lord  Tennyson,  Jenner,  Herschel  and 
many  others. 

AFTER   the  French    revolution,    when   the   Etats    Generaux    prescribed 
the  respective  costumes  of  the  three  estates,  a  lace  cravat  was  decreed 
for  the  noblesse.     When    Napoleon  had  time  to    turn  his  attention 
to  such  matters,  he  did  all  he  could  to  revive  the  lace   industry  in 
France,   with  a  view  to  enriching  the  workers  and  encouraging  the 
luxury  and  brilliance  of  his  court  ;    more  especially  he   directed  his 
energy  in  favour  of  the  Alen9on  industry,  which  was  almost  extinct,  and,  on  his 
marriage  with  Marie  Louise,  ordered  lace  bed  furniture  including  curtains,  valances, 
coverlet    and  pillow-cases  of  the  finest   Alen$on  a  bride,  the  Napoleonic  cypher, 


Portrait  of  Queen  Victoria,  in  Florence  veil  and  corsage  trimming:  of  Applique' 
Lace.  Prom  a  photograph  by  Alex.  Bassano  taken  at  the  time  of  Her 
Majesty's  Jubilee,  1887. 


NINETEENTH     CENTURY.  47 

the  bee,  appearing  in  the  pattern.  The  layette  of  his  little  son  was  also  rich 
in  Point  d'Alen9on,  which,  with  Brussels  and  Chantilly,  was  the  favourite  lace  of 
Napoleon.  He  made  the  wearing  of  lace  at  his  court  obligatory,  and  delighted 
in  the  taste  and  industry  of  the  people  who  could  produce  such  fairy-like  fabric. 

As  a  consequence,  a  brilliant  flicker  of  prosperity  in  the   lace  trade  marked  X 
the  beginning    of  the  nineteenth   century  in   France,    but    the  heavily   made   old 
points  were  neglected,  and  the  graceful  Renaissance  designs,  rose  points  of  Venice 
Spain  and  Milan,  in  double  and  triple  relief,  looking  like  carved  ivory  in  richness, 
were  no  longer  worn. 

The  dotted  style  of  pattern  with  a  modest  border,  drawn  muslin,  embroidered 
Indian  work,  and  Blonde  laces  with  their  thin  grounds  were  the  favourites,  and 
entirely  supplanted  for  personal  wear  the  old  needle-point  fabrics.  Madame 
Recamier,  like  all  dainty  dressers,  was  a  great  wearer  and  buyer  of  lace,  and  her 
bed  curtains  of  finest  Brussels  lace  bordered  with  garlands  of  honeysuckle  and 
lined  with  pale  satin,  her  counterpane  of  the  same,  and  pillows  of  embroidered 
cambric  edged  with  Valenciennes,  were  extremely  delicate. 

Embroidered  muslin  was  worn  to  an  enormous  extent,  and  shared  with  lace 
the  popular  favour.  Lists  of  trousseaux  and  inventories  of  the  period  constantly 
mention  Indian  muslin  dresses,  which  were  even  worn  at  court,  and  doubtless 
appealed  to  the  popular  taste  for  affected  simplicity  as  a  reaction  after  the 
extravagance  and  luxury  of  the  pre-revolution  days. 

All  the  elegantes  of  the    Incroyable  period  wore  muslin    embroidered   fichus  Bobbin  net 
and  scarves,  and  the  lace  trade,  which  had  revived  to  a  certain  extent,  received   was*irst 
another  blow  when  bobbin  net  was  first  made  in  France,  in  1818.    At  this  date     K. 
the  history   of  "old  lace"  ceases:    the  usually   accepted   definition    of   the   term 
includes     all    laces   up    to   the   invention    of  machine-made   net,    the   lace    made 
after  that    being   "  modern."     For  nearly  a  quarter  of   a  century  the  lace  trade 
was  much  depressed,  for  Fashion  delighted  in  the  lightness  of  the  net  and  tulles, 
now  made  by  machinery,  which  had  succeeded  bobbin  net.     The  prices  of  both 
pillow  and  needle-point  laces  were  lowered,  and  had  it  not  been  for  the  opening 
up  of  North  America  as  an  outlet  for  the  sale  of  lace  a  very  severe  crisis  would 
have  taken  place. 

The  introduction  of  machine-made  thread  net,  which  had  so  disastrous  an 
effect  on  the  thread  lace  trade,  gave  a  great  impetus  to  the  silk  lace  varieties. 
Never  before  had  the  Blonde,  Chantilly  and  Bayeux  laces  been  so  popular ; 
the  brilliancy  and  beauty  of  the  silk  ground  were  at  once  recognised  as  distinctive 
features  which  rendered  impossible  any  confusion  of  the  silk  mesh  with  machine- 
made  net,  and,. the  silk  lace  trade  enjoyed  a  popularity  that  was  soon  to  cease 
when  silk  hetlace  by  machinery  was  produced. 

The  tendency  since  that  time  has  always  been  towards  cheapness  in  order   in  1833 
to    compete   with    machine-made    goods.      About    1833    cotton   thread   was   first   cotton  thread 
substituted  for  flax,  with  disastrous  results  to  the  artistic  merit  of  the  lace,  but  instead  of 
it   afforded    increased   facility   for   the   makers,    who   found    the  cotton  cheaper,   flax,  with 
more  elastic,  easier  to  work  and  less  liable  to  break.  results.0"5 

After  the  first  novelty  of  the  bobbin  net  and  tulL  craze  had  worn  off,  a  slight 
reaction  in  favour  of  old  lace  set  in  both  in  England  and  on  the  Continent ;  and 


48 


HISTORY     OF     HAND-MADE     LACE. 


After 

Waterloo  a 
lace   factory 
at  Brussels 
was  turned 
into  a  private 
hospital. 


at  Almack's,  the  Assembly  Rooms  at  Bath  and  Tunbridge  Wells,  the  chaperons 
would  gossip  of  their  lappets  of  Alen9on  or  Brussels.  Numerous  were  the  anecdotes 
as  to  how  this  treasure  or  that  had  turned  up,  having  escaped  the  doom  of 
the  rag-bag,  which,  alas  !  was  the  fate  of  so  much  old  lace  during  the  muslin 
and  net  period. 

The  Duchess  of  Gloucester  was  one  of  the  few  whose  affections  never  swerved 
from  her  love  of  the  old  rich  points  towards  blondes  and  muslins,  and  her 
collection  was  one  of  the  finest  in  Europe.  Lady  Blessington,  too,  loved  costly 
lace,  and,  at  her  death,  left 
several  huge  chests  full  of  it. 
Gradually  lace  began  to  be 
worn  again,  but  it  was  as  it 
were  ignorantly  put  on,  worn 
simply  because  it  was  again 
the  fashion  to  wear  lace,  and 
lace  must  therefore  be  worn  ; 
the  knowledge  of  its  history, 
worth,  and  beauty  was  lacking, 
and  for  a  time  the  mocking  of 
the  connoisseurs  was  justified. 
It  was  the  Count  of  Syracuse 
who  said,  "The  English  ladies 
buy  a  scrap  of  lace  as  a 
souvenir  of  every  town  they 
pass  through,  till  they  reach 
Naples,  then  sew  it  on  their 
dresses  and  make  one  grande 
toilette." 

Then  the  Parisian  dress- 
makers came  to  the  rescue ; 
Madame  Camille,  a  celebrated 
costumier,  saw  the  possibilities 
of  the  situation,  and  was  the 
first  to  bring  old  lace  into 
fashion  again.  Laces  were 
cleaned,  cut  and  adapted  to 
modern  fashion,  and  within  the 
last  fifty  years  the  taste  for 
good  lace  has  again  become  almost  general,  both  in  England  and  in  France. 

An  interesting  incident,  connected  with  Brussels  lace,  took  place  after  the 
battle  of  Waterloo.  Monsieur  Trovaux,  a  manufacturer  at  Brussels,  turned  his 
factory  into  a  hospital  for  English  soldiers,  providing  nurses,  beds,  linen  and  all 
other  necessaries  for  the  wounded  men.  This  humanity  checked  for  the  time 
his  lucrative  business,  but  the  good  man  was  not  a  loser  in  the  end,  as  he 
received  a  decoration  and  his  shop  was  afterwards  always  crowded  with  English 


Napoleon  I.  (1769—1821),  by  Stefano  Totanelli.  -From 
Seidlitz' Historical  Portraits.  He  wears  a  cravat 
of  Venetian  Point. 


NINETEENTH     CENTURY. 


49 


ladies,  who  would  buy  nowhere  else  the  lace  they  desired  to  purchase  in 
Brussels. 

In  touching  upon  the  conditions  of  the  lace  industries  during  the  latter 
half  of  the  nineteenth  century  it  will  be  convenient  to  classify  them  according  to 
their  place  of  origin. 

In  Italy  new  lace  industries  have  grown  up  in  the  present  century. 
Embroidered  net  both  black  and  white  has  been  well  received ;  much  of  this 
work  is  done  in  the  prisons.  Handsome  scarves  and  veils  are  made  as  well  as  lace 
flounces  and  godets  ;  the  design  is  effected  by  darning  with  coarse,  loosely- woven 
silk  thread  upon  a  machine-made  silk  or  cotton  net.  Bold  patterns  are  used  and 
the  effect  is  easily  obtained  and  meets  the  demand  for  a  showy  and  inexpensive 
lace-like  fabric. 

The  "  lace  "  a  la  Reine  Margherite  is  very  different,  though,  like  the  prison 
laces  of  black  and  white,  it  is  simply  embroidered  net ;  it  is  on  very  fine  machine- 


Point  d'Alencon.  The  ground  powdered  with  bees,  the  Napoleonic  cypher. 
This  lace  was  made  for  the  Empress  Marie  Louise  about  1810.  Depth 
14in.  from  the  edge  to  the  central  point. 

made  foundation  and  the  embroidery  rather  aims  at  light  radiating  and  star-like 
patterns  than  at  thick  masses  of  work.  This  lace  is  much  used  for  ruffles,  jabots, 
handkerchief  edgings  and  other  useful  purposes. 

In  Como  and  in  the  villages  round  the  lake,  much  lace  is  made  by  the  cottagers 
at  the  present  day.  It  is  the  bobbin  variety,  a  kind  of  guipure,  and  is  usually  sold 
under  the  general  title  of  Italian  lace;  it  resembles  the  torchon  kinds,  the  most 
usual  form  of  peasant-made  lace  all  over  Europe.  The  laces  usually  identified  with 
Venice  and  Burano,  Chioggia  and  Pelestrina  are  also  made  in  the  district  of  Como. 

In  France  little  lace  is  now  made  except  in  the  Le  Puy  district,  the 
earliest  established  of  all  the  French  lace  centres,  which  has  the  largest  proportion 
of  the  trade  of  the  nineteenth  century  in  Europe.  1  he  production  is  principally 


5o  HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE     LACE. 

heavy  bobbin-made  lace,  which  is  used  chiefly  for  furniture,  curtains,  etc.  Other 
kinds,  notably  black  laces,  are  still  made,  but  their  artistic  value  is  not  great, 
and  the  Chantilly,  torchon,  and  Valenciennes  of  other  countries  are  equal  in 
quality  and  exceed  in  quantity  that  now  made  in  France. 

The  lace   workwomen   of  Le   Puy  are  scattered  all  along  the   Haute   Loire 
and  in  the  Puy  de  Dome,  which  form  the  province.     They  number  about  100,000 


Louise  Adelaide  of  Orleans.  From  the  picture  by  Decrenze  at  the  Musee 
at  Versailles.  Photographed  by  Mendein.  Mechlin  lace  trims  the 
muslin  fichu,  this  was  much  used  at  the  time  (early  19th  century) 
its  lightness  making  it  specially  suitable. 

and  are  employed  upon  the  production  of  blondes  and  guipures,  in  linen,  silk,  anc 
wool  threads.  The  lace  now  made  is  finer  and  better  than  the  old  laces  of  the  same 
district.  In  1875  the  average  wage  of  the  workwomen  was  fifty  centimes  a  day 
Skilful  workers  and  those  who  were  quick  in  learning  any  novelty  which  was  a 
the  moment  in  demand  could  gain  as  much  as  three  francs  a  day. 
The  galloons  called  entoilages  are  no  longer  made  in  the  district. 


NINETEENTH     CENTURY. 


At  Argentan,  where  such  famous  laces  were  made  in  the  seventeenth  century, 
there  is  now  no  important  factory.  At  Arras,  where  laces  were  made  which 
rivalled  those  of  Lille,  there  are  only  a  few  hundred  workers,  the  number  having 
dwindled  since  the  30,000  lace-makers  of  the  eighteenth  century  were  busy  with 
their  bobbins. 

In   Spain  needle  laces  are  no  longer  made  ;   the  old  industry  in  imitation  of 

Point  de  Venise  has  entirely 
died  out.  Bobbin  laces  only 
are  executed  and  the  designs 
are  usually  in  execrable  taste. 
In  Portugal  the  lace  of 
the  nineteenth  century  rivals 
that  of  Spain  in  poverty  of 
design,  and  is  inferior  to  it 
in  execution.  The  largest 
quantity  is  made  at  Peniche, 
in  Estremadura. 

In    Madeira    there    are 
now  comparatively  few  lace- 
workers,  the  industry  of  the 
island  being  chiefly  directed 
-towards  embroidery. 

The  laces  of  Germany 
are  not  important.  Saxony 
has  never  produced  any 
original  lace,  but  her  trade 
in  the  last  century  was 
considerable  ;  the  lace  is 
inferior  now,  and  is  largely 
exported  to  America,  possi- 
bly for  the  use  of  the  many 
Germans  who  have  settled 
there,  and  who  perhaps  still 
retain  a  taste  for  German 
producti  :  otherwise  it  is 
impossible  to  explain  a 
preference  which  seems  un- 
justifiable. 

In  Austria  the  old  lace 
factories  at  Laybach  and  Illering  ceased  to  exist  with  the  eighteenth  century. 

In  Switzerland  a  good  deal  of  lace  is  still  made,  but  the  designs  shown  at  the 
Paris  Exhibition  in  1851  were  greatly  wanting  in  originality;  these  came  from 
Locle  Connet  and  Chaux  de  Fonds  and  were  chiefly  of  the  blonde  and  torchon 
varieties. 

Swedish  lace  finds  purchasers  only  in  its  native  country  ;  this  is  also  the 
case  with  the  Rttssian  fabrics,  which  are  most  original  in  design  and  workmanship, 


Bridal  Dress  of  1830.  The  veil  is  of  Belgian  bobbin  sprigs 
mounted  on  machine-made  net ;  the  flounces  are  of  old 
Brussels. 


K  2 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE     LACE. 


I 


Machine- 
made  net  had 
a  depressing 
influence  on 
the  Honiton 
lace 
industry. 


and  it  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  steps  are  not  taken  to  encourage  the  industry  on 
a  large  scale.  In  all  probability  very  valuable  results  would  be  obtained  in  a 
country  where  the  native  lace  is  so  fine  and  of  such  a  distinct  type  (though 
somewhat  barbaric)  and  where  an  important  home  industry  would  be  valuable  in 
ameliorating  the  condition  of  the  peasant  population. 

Irish  lace,  fostered  and  encouraged  to  a  certain  extent  in  the  eighteenth 
century,  was  recognised  as  an  article  of  commerce  in  the  nineteenth.  The 
manufacture  of  Limerick  lace  was  established  in  1829;  this  so-called  lace  work  is 
strictly  embroidery  or  network  ;  the  tambour  stitch  is  sometimes  worked  upon 
Nottingham  net.  Crochet  and  other  Irish  laces  are  all  imitations  of  the  older 
foreign  fabrics. 

One  of  the  few  new  kinds  of 
hand-made  lace  invented  during  the 
nineteenth  century  is  the  Poly- 
chromo  lace  made  at  Venice.  This 
is  a  very  beautiful  fabric  made  with 
bobbins  of  many  coloured  silks  ; 
sometimes  as  many  as  300  to  400 
are  employed  upon  one  seven-inch 
flounce,  the  delicate  shading  of  the 
colours  being  obtained  by  the 
enormous  number  of  tints  used. 
The  designs  are  taken  from  old 
Venetian  and  Raphaelesque  point, 
and  the  lace  is  used  either  for 
furniture  or  for  personal  wear. 

Another  lace  originated  in  the 
nineteenth  century  is  that  called 
Petit  Motif.  It  is  a  bobbin  lace  of 
most  attractive  design,  the  quality 
and  pattern  being  always  the  same. 
To  France  must  be  conceded  the 
honour  of  its  creation  ;  it  is  now 
made  in  Venice  and  in  Flanders. 

A  new  departure  in  Honiton  lace-making  was  first  introduced  in  Devonshire 
in  1874,  though  it  had  been  known  in  Belgium  before  that  time.  The  characteristic 
of  this  variety,  which  is  called  Devonia  lace,  consists  in  the  raised  petals, 
butterfly  wings,  or  other  forms  which  occur  in  the  design  ;  these  are  worked 
separately  and  stand  out  in  relief. 

Early  in  the  nineteenth  century  royal  favour  was  sought  for  the  lace-workers 
in  Devonshire,  who  had  been  much  distressed  by  the  introduction  of  machine-made 
net,  and  Queen  Adelaide  gave  an  order  for  a  complete  dress  to  be  made  of  Honiton 
sprigs  ;  these  were  mounted  on  machine-made  ground,  so  that  both  industries  were 
benefited,  for  it  was  realized  that  the  struggle  between  manual  labour  and  invention 
could  only  have  one  result,  and  it  would  be  useless  to  attempt  to  bolster  up  a  dying 
industry  such  as  that  of  the  hand-made  net.  The  design  for  the  royal  order  was 


Jenny  Lind,  from  an  engraving  by  William  Holl, 
showing  early  Victorian  tippet  of  black  Chan- 
tilly  lace. 


NINETEENTH     CENTURY. 


53 


to  be  copied  from  nature,  for  during 
the  depression  in  the  Honiton  trade 
the  patterns  used  had  gradually 
degenerated.  The  skirt  of  this  his- 
torical dress  was  encircled  by  a  wreath 
of  flowers  whose  initial  letters  formed 
the  name  of  the  Queen  :  Amaranth, 
Daphne,  Eglantine,  Lilac,  Auricula, 
Ivy,  Dahlia,  Eglantine. 

Queen  Adelaide  was  always  ready 
to  lend  her  aid  in  mending  the  for- 
tunes of  the  industrial  classes.  In 
1826  the  reduction  of  the  duty  on 
French  tulle  caused  so  much  distress 
in  Nottingham  in  consequence  of  the 
ladies  wearing  the  cheaper  foreign 
make,  that  Her  Majesty  appeared  at 
one  of  her  balls  in  a  dress  of  English 
silk  net,  and  requested  her  ladies  to 
wear  only  English  tulle  at  Court. 

Thirty  years  ago  it  was  stated 
that  8,000  people  were  employed  in 
making  -joniton  lace  ;  this  number 


Lady  Elizabeth  Craven,  from  the  "  Court 
Alburn,"^  1857,  showing  sleeve  trimming1  of 
Applique  lace,  characteristic  of  the  middle 
of  the  nineteenth  century. 


The   Countess   of   Malmesbury,  from   the    "Court 
Album, ' '  1856.    Her  collar  is  of  Devonshire  guipure. 


has  since  greatly  lessened..  Only  the 
thin  common  sorts  are  made ;  few 
designs-  are  executed  which  demand 
close  labour,  and  the  so-called  Honi- 
ton lace  of  the  present  day  can  no 
longer  be  considered*  a  fine  lace.  Only 
old  women  who  learnt  the  art  in  their 
youth  work  at  it,  so  that  it  is  quickly 
dying  out.  Sprigs  and  borders,  which 
are  worked  separately,  are  collected 
from  the  cottag*e  makers  by  agents, 
and  are  paid  for  at  a  rate  which 
wojrks  out  in  some  cases  at  three 
farthings  or  one  penny  an  hour,  in 
consequence  of  which  children  and 
young  girls  are  no  longer  taught,  or 
if  they  learn  give  up  a  trade  at 
which  they  can  earn  but  four  or  five 
shillings  a  week  for  more  lucrative 
employment  such  as  dressmaking  or 
millinery,  at  which  they  can  at  least 
earn  a  shilling  a  day.  There  are, 
happily,  a  few  isolated  exceptions 
to  this  depressing  state  oi  affairs. 


54 


HISTORY  OF  HAND-MADE  LACE. 


Why  is  not 
hand-made 
lace  made  an 
enormous 
industry  in 
England? 


With  artistic 
direction 
English  lace 
need  no 
longer  hold  a 
fifth-rate 
place. 


Mrs.  Fowler,  of  Honiton,  still  has  a  small  lace  school  where  only  the  finest  work  is 
done  and  the  old  stitches  and  vrai  reseau  are  taught  ;  Miss  Herbert,  of  Exeter, 
also  encourages  the  old  traditions  ;  and  Miss  Audrey  Trevelyan  has  introduced 
with  some  success  graceful  Italian  and  French  designs  at  Beer  and  Seaton. 

The  English  application  lace  of  to-day  is,  as  a  rule,  less  successful  than  that 
of  Brussels,  for  the  machine-made  net  ground  upon  which  the  hand-made  flowers 
are  applied  is  thicker,  inferiority  and  less  delicacy  in  the  appearance  of  the  lace 
being  the  results  ;  nevertheless  the  work  is  excellently  done  and  has  the  great 
advantage  of  coming  from  the  workers'  hands  perfectly  white  in  colour. 

It  is  strange  that  in  our  country,  where  the  classes  are  so  much  interested 
in  the  welfare  and  well-being  of  the  masses,  and  where  protest  is  continually  being 
made  against  the  growing  tendency  of  women  to  leave  their  homes  and  seek  work 
outside  the  home  circle,  the  industry  of  lace-making  has  never  been  taken  up  by 
some  wealthy  enthusiast  who  could  place  the  industry  upon  a  solid  artistic  and 
business  basis,  without  which  industrial  enterprise  can  never  flourish. 

In  those  efforts  which  have  hitherto  been  made,  one  or  other  essential  founda- 
tion has  apparently  been  lacking  ;  and  though  it  is  charming  to  watch  the  efforts  of 
ladies  to  encourage  dainty  work,  or  to  see  industry  in  any  form,  it  is  also  depressing 
to  think  that  want  of  the  old  methods,  want  of  artistic  direction  in  the  designing  and 
management,  or  want  of  business  co-operation  with  the  great  lace  merchants  of  the 
world  (who  after  all  hold  the  balance  of  success  in  their  hands,  because  they  are  the 
great  medium  for  disposing  of  the  product  to  the  general  public,  and  to  a  large 
extent  for  creating  a  taste  in  the  public  for- the  fabric),  has  hitherto  prevented 
real  success  and  permanence  in  the  efforts  to  restore  the  old  industry  in 
Great  Britain. 

The  English  point  lace  of  the  seventeenth  century  was  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  and  artistic  products  which  the  world  has  ever  seen  :  the  Point 
d'Angleterre  in  those  days  was  imitated  in  Belgium,  so  great  was  the  demand  for 
the  costly  fabric.  It  was  constantly  sent  to  Paris  even  when  the  Alengon  fabrics 
were  in  the  height  of  their  popularity,  and  enormous  fortunes  were  made  by  lace 
merchants.  Departure  from  the  old  designs  caused  the  decline  of  the  industry, 
which  is  clearly  seen  in  the  degraded  artistic  methods  of  the  present  industry  in 
Devonshire.  Given  a  sound  commercial  basis  and  capable  direction,  there  would 
soon  be  a  revival  of  the  beautiful  old  methods  now  that  renewed  interest  is  takeri 
in  fine  laces. 

Not  even  the  stitches  would  have  to  be  learnt  by  the  workers,  for  they  already 
know  them  :  it  would  only  be  necessary  to  furnish  such  designs  as  would  double 
the  value  of  the  product.  The  labour  and  material  now  expended  upon  the 
production  of  lace  worth  only  ten  shillings  per  yard,  would,  if  graceful  and  saleable 
designs  were  worked,  produce  a  fabric  worth  fifteen  shillings  or  a  guinea  a  yard. 
In  fact,  to  restore  the  artistic  direction  would  be  to  restore  the  great  lace  industry 
of  England,  and  raise  it  from  the  fifth-rate  position  which  it  now  holds  to  the 
splendid  position  attained  by  the  lovely  Point  d'Angleterre  of  the  seventeenth 
century.  The  Honiton  lace  of  to-day  is  but  the  exquisite  Point  d'Angleterre  of  the 
Restoration  period  in  a  debased  condition. 


NINETEENTH    CENTURY. 


55 


Briefly,  the  advantages  of  the  lace  industry  for  England  are  these  : 

1.  Women  need  not  leave  their  homes  in  order  to  do  the  work. 

2.  In  a  properly  organised  lace  school  the  girls  are  well  cared  for  and  protected 
while  learning  the  industry. 

3.  Perfect  hygienic  conditions  and  personal  cleanliness  are  essential  for  the 
lace- maker. 

4.  There  is  plenty  of  scope  for  individual  effort  and  distinction,  a  stimulating 
consideration,  which  puts  the  lace- worker  on  a  superior  footing  to  the  woman  who 
merely  works  a  machine. 

5.  The  work  is  so  light  that  the  most  delicate  woman  or  girl  can  undertake  it. 

6.  Mastery  of  the  technical  details  is  so  easy  that  in  lace-making  countries, 
such  as  Belgium  and  Italy,  children  of  seven  or  eight  years  commence  to  learn  the 
"  stitches." 

7.  Every  woman  newly  employed  in  lace-making  is  one  taken  from  the  great 
army    of  women  who,   in   earning   their   living,   encroach   upon  those   trades  and 
professions  which  have  hitherto  been  looked  upon  as  the  monopoly  of  men. 


Miss  Emily  Yelverton,  from  the  "  Court  Album," 
1854.  The  bell-shaped  lace  sleeves  of  the 
period  and  bodice  trimming  are  of  Rose 
point  lace. 


CHAPTER     VI. 


Gold,  silver, 
and  flax 
thread  laces 
of  fabulous 
value. 


ECCLESIASTICAL  LACE. 

N  writing  of  lace  used  for  Church  ,  purposes  there  is  no  separate 
history  to  relate.  It  is  simply  the  story  of  the  finest  specimens  of 
every  make  of  lace  which  the  skill  of  the  artist  could  design  and 
the  patient  work  of  the  lace-maker  could  execute,  enriched  beyond 
the  richest  lace  for  personal  adornment  by  modes  and  stitches 
put  in  gratuitously,  as  it  were,  because  of  the  love  and  devotion 
in  the  heart  of  the  worker.  It  is  for  this  reason,  because  Church 
lace  was  generally  made  at  convents  where  time  was  no  object, 
and  where  only  the  beauty  of  the  fabric  was  studied  and  enrich- 
ment devised  because  nothing  could  be  too  beautiful  for  the  service 
of  God,  that  ecclesiastical  lace  is  so  fine. 

Amongst  the  treasures  in  the  cathedrals  abroad,  there  are  laces 
of  gold  and  silver,  flax  thread  laces,   too,   of  fabulous  value ;    the 
dresses  of  the  Saints  and  Madonnas  were  profusely  decorated  with 
the  richest  and   most   costly   of  whatever   was  the  fashion   of  the 
day.      It  is  unfortunate  that  though  the  Inventory  of  the  treasures 
of  N6tre  Dame  de   Loreto  fills  a  thick  volume,  and  the  figure  of 
the  Saint  was   freshly  clothed   every   day,    so   magnificent   are   the 
plate,  jewels,  and  brocades,  that   no    mention  is  made  of  the  laces,  which   are 
probably  on  the  same  gorgeous  scale. 

At  Notre  Dame  at  Paris  at  the  present  day  three  specimens  of  lace  of  the 
seventeenth  century  are  amongst  the  most  costly  and  beautiful  of  all  the  tresors  kept 
in  the  strong  room  of  the  sacristy.  Each  one  shows  the  special  kind  of  lace  in  its 
most  ornate  and  lovely  form.  An  alb  of  priceless  Argentan  is  in  Renaissance  design  ; 
the  fillings  are  so  fine  and  intricate  that  it  is  impossible,  without  a  microscope,  to 
appreciate  their  beauty,  while  the  ground  is  of  brides  ornees  in  the  famous  six-sided 
honeycomb  boucle  with  infinite  number  of  pearls  forming  a  rich  ground  for  the 
pattern.  The  deep  flounce  of  Point  d'Angleterre  which  trims  the  second  alb  is 
also  of  the  finest  workmanship,  the  old  flax  thread  still  of  admirable  colour; 
and  the  remarkable  preservation  of  the  Flemish  lace  which  decorates,  or  rather 
forms,  the  third  alb  shows  with  what  care  such  costly  vestments  were  always 
treated.  Such  garments  were  worn  only  by  the  celebrant  of  High  Mass  on  some 
great  festival. 


FONT 

CKEATVS  <L»6.LJyjisj7sa. 


Portrait  of  Pope  Clement  Mil.  Rezzonicus  (1693-1769).  The  identical  Point 
de  Burano  lace  he  wears  is  now  in  the  possession  of  Queen  Margherita 
of  Italy,  who  lent  it  for  reproduction  to  the  Burano  lace  factory  to 
assist  the  recent  efforts  to  revive  the  lace  industry  on  the  island. 
Dentelle  Rezzonicus  is  now  a  variety  of  lace  well  known  to  connoisseurs. 


ECCLESIASTICAL     LACE.  57 

Amongst  the  stores  of  gold-embroidered  chasubles,  gem-studded  crosses,  mitres 
and  cups,  where  masses  of  diamonds  sparkle  on  historic  reliquaries,  and  pearls, 
emeralds,  and  rubies  enrich  even  the  cups  and  platters  used  in  the  service  of 
the  Church,  the  exquisite  grace  and  delicacy  of  the  lace  appear  all  the  more 
pronounced,  and  this  miracle  of  patient  industry,  built  up  from  the  simplest 
material,  a  little  thread,  rivals  in  startling  beauty  objects  which  are  made  with 
the  costliest  and  most  precious  materials  the  world  can  produce. 

The  lace  of  the  Vatican  is  constantly  mentioned  in  describing  the  ceremonials  The  vest' 
of  the  Church,  and  it  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  refer  to  the  chief  vestments  used  mentschiefly 
in  the  Church  of  Rome  at  the  present  day,  and  in  England  before  the  Reformation ;  wjth  iace> 
these  are  the  cassock,  the  amice,  the  alb,  the  girdle,  the  maniple,  the  stole,  the  • 
chasuble,  the  dalmatic,  the  tunic,  the  veil,  the  cope  and  the  surplice.    Of  these,  the 
dalmatic,  the  surplice  and  the  alb,  are  the  vestments  chiefly  ornamented  with  lace. 
The  dalmatic  is  a  long  robe  open  on  each  side,  resembling  a  chasuble,  but  with  wide 
sleeves.      Its   origin   is   extremely  ancient.      St.   Isidore  declares  its  name  to  be 
derived  from  Dalmatia,  where  it  was  first  used.     It  is  ornamented  with  two  strips 


Border  of  Bobbin-made  Lace,  from  the  yoke  of  a  dressed  Ecclesiastical  statuette.      The  design  consists 
of  symbolical  figures  placed  upon  a  net  ground  or  "reseau."      Flemish,  eighteenth  century. 

like  the  Roman  dresses  of  the  same  period  ;    these  strips,   originally  of  purple  or 
scarlet,  are  now  usually  of  rich  lace  or  gold  embroidery. 

At  the  Cathedral  at  Burano,  the  lace  sets  for  the  use  of  the  Church  are  mag- 
nificent, the  old  Burano  point  frontals  especially  being  of  extraordinary  beauty  ;  the 
solidity  of  this  lace  renders  it  possible  that  antique  specimens  should  be  in  a  perfect 
state  of  preservation,  for  the  firm  and  frequent  knotting  of  the  flax  threads  makes  it 
in  some  rare  instances  almost  as  stiff  as  cardboard.  We  have  seen  pieces  which 
resembled  thin  card  in  stiffness,  though  it  will  be  remembered  that  Burano  point, 
both  ancient  and  modern,  has  the  arabesque  design  upon  a  mesh  net  ground,  the 
tint  being  generally  of  a  rich  coffee  colour. 

Vine  leaves  and  wheat  ears  are  the  most  usual  themes  for  the  designers  to  work 
from,  and  very  beautiful  are  some  of  the  variations  of  these  natural  objects. 

Some  of  the  most  interesting  and  beautiful  lace  ever  made  at   Burano  was   The  lace 
executed  for  Pope  Clement  XIII.  Rezzonico  ;    this  was  in  the  form  of  a  chasuble  Re22°0Pnico. 
and  flounce.       It  is  now  in   the  possession  of   Queen   Margherita  of  Italy,  who 
graciously  lent   it  to  the   Royal   School  at    Burano  for  the  purpose  of  copying, 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Bridal  lace 
for  the 
Church. 


knowing  that  the  old  design  and  stitches  would  be  faithfully  carried  out,  for  the 
old  spirit  of  artistic  execution  and  beauty  of  feeling  in  the  work  still  survives  at 
Burano,  where  work  equal  to  any  done  in  the  hey-day  of  fine  lace  work  of  the 
seventeenth  century  is  going  on  at  the  present  day. 

Comparatively  little  lace  is  now  made  in  convents  ;  more  perhaps  in  Belgium 
than  elsewhere,  but  little  in  comparison  with  the  amount  which  was  once  executed. 
Aprons  which  are  worn  by  Roman  Catholic  bishops  when  performing 
ceremonies,  have  always  been  made  of  the  costliest  lace.  In  the  eighteenth 
century,  in  a  description  of  the  washing  of  feet  by  the  Pope,  such  an  apron,  of  old 
point  lace  with  a  broad  border  of  Mechlin,  is  mentioned.  Unfortunately  the  laces 
of  the  Holy  Conclave  are  often  sold  at  the  death  of  a  cardinal  by  his  heirs  ;  some- 
times the  newly  elected  cardinal  purchases  most  of  the  stock,  as  the  high 
ecclesiastical  dignitaries  of  the  Church 
of  Rome  are  obliged  to  possess  com- 
plete sets  of  great  value. 

The  lace  of  the  Rohan  family, 
hereditary  Princes,  Archbishops  of 
Strasburg,  which  has  never  been  dis- 
persed, but  has  been  steadily  acquired 
through  successive  generations,  is  of 
fabulous  value  ;  on  some  of  the  albs 
the  arms  and  device  of  the  family, 
worked  in  medallions,  are  introduced 
in  the  design. 

Guipure  lace  was  much  used  for 
the  adornment  of  the  altar  hangings, 
the  richness  o£  the  gold  and  silver 
thread  being  most  effective.  In  the 
seventeenth  century,  in  the  inventory 
of  the  Oratoire  in  Paris,  the  veils  for 
the  Host  are  mentioned,  one  of  white 
taffetas,  trimmed  with  Guipure, 
another  of  white  brocaded  satin  with 
lace  Guipure. 

Lace  is  frequently  bequeathed  to 
the  Church  or  given  during  the  life- 
time of  some  fair  devoue.  In  the 
eighteenth  century,  when  Barbara,  sister  of  the  King  of  Portugal,  was  married, 
the  bride  of  seventeen  solemnly  offered  to  the  Virgin  at  the  Church  of  Madre  de 
Dios  the  jewels  and  dress  of  splendid  point  lace  in  which  she  had  just  been  married. 
In  modern  days  the  Empress  of  the  French  presented  to  his  Holiness  the  Pope 
for  conversion  into  a  rochet,  the  most  costly  dress  which  has  ever  been  executed 
at  Alencon.  This  dress  was  exhibited  in  1859,  and  was  bought  by  the  Emperor 
for  200,000  francs.  The  ground  was  of  the  vrai  reseau,  or  needle-point  mesh,  now 
so  seldom  seen. 


Square  or  "Pale"  for  Covering  the  Paten,  of 
Needle-point  Lace  "  a  reseau  "  ;  with  a  Thread 
instead  of  the  usual  Buttonhole-stitched 
"Cordonnet."  In  the  centre  is  the  Sacred 
Monogram  surrounded  by  rays  of  glory  and 
by  the  instruments  of  the  Passion,  the  dice, 
the  coat,  the  crown  of  thorns,  the  cock,  the 
ladder,  hammer,  and  pincers,  &c.  Point 
d'Alencon,  French,  eighteenth  century.  5i 
inches  by  5i  inches. 


ECCLESIASTICAL     LACE. 


59 


One  of  the  finest  specimens  of  lace  made  at  Valenciennes  was  the  trimming 
of  an  alb  made  in  the  seventeenth  century  and  presented  to  the  Convent  of  the 
Visitation  on  its  foundation  in  1603.  This  lace  was  more  than  three-quarters  of  a 
yard  wide,  the  thread  extremely  fine,  and  the  value  of  the  work  can  be  estimated 
when  we  understand  that  it  used  to  take  a  worker  ten  months,  working  fifteen 
hours  a  day,  to  finish  a  pair  of  men's  ruffles.  Valenciennes  lace  is  made  altogether 
on  the  pillow,  with  bobbins ;  one  kind  of  thread  is  used  for  both  pattern  and  ground. 
The  city-made  lace  known  as  Vrai  Valenciennes  is  most  highly  prized,  Batarde 
or  Fausse  Valenciennes  being  the  name  for  the  fabric  made  outside  the  town. 
Not  only  the  finest  web  of  Valenciennes,  but  also  the  coarse,  but  artistic, 

fabric  called    Fil    de    Carnasiere,     or    Italian 
knotted    lace,    was   used    for    the    service 
of  the  Church  in    the  early  days  of  lace- 
making.       Punto     a     Groppo     was      in 
vogue   both     in   Spain    and    in   Italy, 
the      strongholds     of      the      Roman 
Catholic   Church,    for   ecclesiastical 
linen      and      Church      vestments, 
from  medieval   times   up   to   the 
end   of  the  seventeenth  century, 
and   was   sometimes   made   with 
the  loose  ends  hanging  as  in  the 
modern  knotted  lace  or  macrame; 
sometimes  with  ends  knotted  into 
a    scalloped    design    and    cut  off. 
In  the  painting  by  Paul  Veronese, 
of  Simon  the   Canaanite,    now   in 
the   Louvre,    this    lace    adorns    the 
table  cloth. 

In    writing   of  lace   made  for    the   use  The  seif, 
of  the   Church,  it  must  not  be  forgotten   sacrificing 
that  many  a  splendid  piece  has  been  worked 
by  ladies  who  desired  to  show  their  devotion 
in  some  way  more  self-sacrificing  than  by  pay- 
ing others  to  do  the  work  of  their  offering,  or 

who  could  not  afford  to  make  a  rich  present  and  must  devote  time  and  labour 
if  they  wished  their  gift  to  be  a  valuable  one.  Though  the  work  of  the  nuns  is 
very  beautiful  and  shows  much  devotion  and  disregard  of  trouble  where  increased 
richness  of  effect  is  possible,  yet  some  of  the  work  of  ladies'  hands  presented  to 
the  Church  equals  it ;  in  some  instances  it  has  been  the  patient  work  of  half 
a  lifetime,  and  one  imagines  the  thoughts  of  piety  and  devotion  that  were  worked 
in  with  stitches  visible  still  as  miracles  of  patience. 

In  "  Church  Embroidery  :  Ancient  and  Modern,"  we  are  told  that  in  the 
churchwardens'  accounts  of  St.  Mary-at-Hill,  London,  in  1486,  mention  is  made 
of  "a  frontill  for  the  schelffe,  standing  on  the  altar,  of  blue  sarsanet  with 
brydds  of  golde." 


Pontiff  in  Alb  richly  trimmed 
with  Point  d'Argentan. 


6o 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE     LACE. 


In  Jewish 
ceremonials 
a  lace^ 
trimmed 
cloth  or  talith 
is  used. 


— 


The  Norman  English  Church  perpetuated  the  Anglo-Saxon  use  of  movable 
altar  frontals,  a  practice  which  was  continued  up  to  the  time  of  the  Reformation, 
at  which  epoch  every  parochial  church  was  furnished  with  complete  sets  of  frontals 
and  hangings  for  the  altars. 

With  the  destruction  of  the  stone  altars  at  the  Reformation  and  their 
replacement  by  the  "decent  table"  provided  at  the  cost  of  the  parish,  standing 
on  a  frame  as  commanded  by  Elizabeth  in  1565,  most  of  the  beautiful  lace  and 
embroidered  apparels  disappeared  from  the  church— alas  !  frequently  to  be  cut 
up  as  coverings  for  the  chairs  and  beds  of  the  professors  of  the  new  faith. 

The  bands  placed  vertically 
on  an  altar  cloth,  a  reredos,  an 
ecclesiastical  vestment  or  hang- 
ings are  all  called  orphreys ;  these 
are  generally  of  the  richest  needle- 
work, sometimes  of  gold  lace  or 
cloth  of  gold,  embroidery,  flax 
thread  lace,  velvet,  silk  or  satin 
trimmed  with  gold  lace.  Such 
bands  vary  in  width,  but  are 
always  an  important  feature  in 
the  decoration  of  the  frontal  band 
or  clavi  that  adorns  the  priest's 
alb.  The  same  decoration  used  to 
border  the  robes  of  knights  was 
also  called  an  orphrey.  The  name 
is  supposed  to  be  derived  from 
Auripkrygium,  the  Roman  name  for 
work  in  gold  and  silver  thread. 

Some  of  the  finest  lace  ever 
executed  has  been  made  for  use 
in  the  Jewish  Church.  The  talith, 
a  cloth  used  in  some  of  the  Hebrew 
ceremonials,  is  often  richly  orna- 
mented with  lace;  two  long  borders 
are  of  lace  about  eight  inches  wide, 
four  square  pieces  ornament  the 
centre,  and  there  is  a  border  of  lace 
round  the  long  scarf-like  cloth.  We 

have  seen  Point  Neige,  the  most  delicate  needle-point  in  double  and  triple  relief, 
worked  in  ecru  silk  thread  for  the  ornamentation  of  a  talith. 

Hollie  or  Holy  Point  was  originally  made  entirely  for  Church  use,  and  the 
name  was  used  in  the  Middle  Ages  for  any  sort  of  Church  lace  work,  whether 
drawn  or  cut  work,  darned  netting  or  needle-point  lace,  when  the  pattern  was 
formed  of  some  subject  from  Scripture  history  or  contained  sacred  emblems.  Italy, 
Spain,  Flanders,  and  England  all  produced  Hollie  Points,  the  favourite  figures  for 


Pope  Clement   XIV.    in   an  Alb   trimmed   with  fine 
Needle-point  Lace.     Eighteenth  century. 


ECCLESIASTICAL     LACE. 


61 


Choristers  in  Lace-trimmed  Surplices  such  as 
are  worn  at  the  Vatican. 


illustration  being   Adam   and   Eve,  the  Tree  of  Knowledge,  the  Holy  Dove  and 
Annunciation    Lily,  with  occasionally   accompanying   figures.      After    the    Refor- 
mation,   when   the   hoards   of 
laces  belonging  to  the  Church       j 
were  scattered,  Hollie  points 

were  frequently  used  for   lay  R~& 

purposes  and  religious  sub- 
jects were  specially  worked 
for  personal  adornment  by  the 
Puritans  ;  the  name  Hollie 
Point  is  now  used  for  a  kind 
of  darned  net-work  or  crochet. 
This  has  frequently  been  em- 
ployed to  ornament  christen- 
ing suits,  which  were  once 
much  used,  the  child  wearing 
for  the  ceremony  in  church  a 
special  cap  ;  mittens  of  lace 
were  also  provided  for  the 
christening  suit,  together  with 
bearing  cloth  richly  trimmed 
with  Hollie  Point,  and  occa- 
sionally dress  or  shirt  trimming.  It  was  the  custom  for  the  sponsors  to  give 

a  set  of  christening  laces 
consisting  of  richly-trimmed 
front,  mittens,  cap  and  cuft 
edgings.  It  has  been  sug- 
gested that  this  presentation 
of  ornamented  linen  at  the 
baptism  is  a  relic  of  the  pre- 
sentation of  white  clothes  to 
the  neophytes  when  received 
into  the  Christian  Church. 

In  a  painting  by  Wat- 
teau,  at  Versailles,  the 
Grand  Dauphin  is  repre- 
sented with  his  father,  Louis 
XIV. ;  the  child  is  covered 
with  a  mantle  or  bearing 
cloth  edged  with  a  deep 
flounce  of  the  richest  Point 
de  France.  It  was  the  cus- 
tom for  the  Papal  Nuncio  to 
present  to  the  new-born  Dauphin  Holy  linen,  a  kind  of  layette  which  had  been 
blessed  by  the  Pope.  This  was  quite  distinct  from  a  christening  suit,  for  the 


Pope  Pius  VII.,  from  a  picture  by  Giuseppe  Bazzoli. 
The  sleeve  trimming  of  the  alb  is  of  fine  Point 
d'Angleterre. 


62  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

shirts,  handkerchiefs,  and  other  necessaries,  all  trimmed  elaborately  with  lace,  were 
in  half-dozens.     This  custom  is  of  very  early  origin. 

'In  all  parts  of  Italy,  and  in  Venice  especially,  a  lace-trimmed  cushion  is  used 
for  the  child  to  lie  upon  when  brought  to  be  baptised,  and  on  other  occasions  of 
ceremony.  When  the  parents  are  wealthy  the  costliest  points  are  used  for  this 
purpose,  and  children  of  the  present  day  may  be  seen  lying  in  a  bower  of  finest 
lace  cambric  with  dainty  ribbon  bows. 

Costly  lace  Another  use  which  lace  has  been  put  to  from  remote  ages  is  in  the  dressing 

for  the  cloth-   of  the  dead.      The  first  forms  of  lace   work,   before  the  evolution   of  actual  lace, 
dead  were  freety  usgd  by  the  ancients  for  winding-sheets  and  cere  cloths.      We  allude 

to  cut-work  combined  with  embroidery. 

Besides  the  mummy  wrappings  of  the  ancient  Egyptians,  many  of  which  are 
ornamented  with  drawn  thread  work  and  other  early  forms  of  lace,  other  countries 
have  ussd  the  lace  as  a  decoration  for  grave  clothes.  In  the  Ionian  Islands 
quantities  of  funeral  lace  have  been  found  amongst  the  tombs  ;  not  many  years 
ago  the  natives  used  to  rifle  these  places  of  interment  and  take  the  booty  for  sale 
to  the  towns.  So  profitable  was  the  trade  that  a  coarse  lace  was  made,  steeped  in 
coffee  and  blackened,  that  it  might  look  as  if  it  had  once  adorned  the  dead  body 
of  a  long  buried  Ionian. 

At  Monreale,  near  Palermo,  the  mummies  in  some  of  the  catacombs  of  the 
Capucini  Convent  are  tricked  out  with  lace.  They  are  a  gruesome  spectacle,  for 
there  are  between  five  and  six  thousand  of  them  hanging  by  their  necks. 

In  the  whole  of  the  North  of  Europe  lace-trimmed  habits  were  used  for 
clothing  the  dead,  and  in  Denmark  there  is  a  tomb  which  contains  a  body  clothed 
in  priceless  Point  d'Angleterre  and  Mechlin  lace.  Mummies  in  Danish  churches 
are  frequently  decked  out  with  costly  laces  of  the  period  in  which  they  lived. 

In  Spain  it  was  the  right  of  the  nobility  to  be  clad  in  the  dress  they  wore  in 
life  rather  than  the  habit  of  some  religious  order,  and  much  lace  was  consequently 
used  when  the  fashion  for  wearing  cravats  and  ruffles  prevailed. 

When,  to  encourage  the  woollen  manufactures,  an  Act  was  passed  that  the 
dead  should  be  buried  in  woollen  shifts,  a  woman  in  London  at  once  applied  to 
the  King,  in  1678,  for  the  sole  privilege  of  making  woollen  laces  for  the  decent 
burial  of  the  dead.  Amy  Potter  was  this  ingenious  inventor,  who  desired  to 
profit  by  the  lugubrious  occasion.  Her  advertisement  appears  in  the  London 
Gazette  for  August  i2th,  1678: — 

"  Whereas  decent  and  fashionable  laces,  shifts,  and  dressings  for  the  dead, 
made  of  woollen,  have  been  presented  to  His  Majesty  by  Amy  Potter,  widow 
(the  first  that  put  the  making  of  such  things  in  practice),  and  His  Majesty  well 
liking  the  same  hath,  upon  her  humble  petition,  been  graciously  pleased  to  give 
her  leave  to  insert  this  advertisement,  that  it  may  be  known  she  now  wholly 
applies  herself  in  making  both  lace  and  plain  of  all  sorts,  at  reasonable  prices, 
and  lives  in  Crane  Court,  in  the  Old  Change,  near  St.  Paul's  Churchyard." 

The  effigies  of  monarchs  and  celebrated  persons  displayed  for  public  view 
have  always  been  decked  with  lace  ;  it  will  be  remembered  that  the  wax- works 
preserved  at  Westminster  Abbey  are  so  decorated. 


FANS. 

HE  earliest  known  fan-leat  entirely  of  lace  Earliest  fans, 
was  made  in  Flanders  in  the  early  half  of 
the  seventeenth  century,  for  the  Duke  of 
Brabant.  Before  that  time  lace-trimmed 
fans  only  were  used,  the  leaf  itself  being 
of  silk  taffeta  or  parchment  upon  which  the  lace  was 
gummed  or  sewn  ;  these  are  frequently  to  be  seen 
in  contemporary  pictures. 
In  the  history  of  fans  pictorial  representation  has  to  be  much  relied  upon,  for 
from  their  frequent  use — and  they  formerly  had  much  harder  wear,  if  old  records 
are  to  be  believed,  than  they  have  at  the  present  day — fans  of  earlier  date  than  the 
eighteenth  century  are  rarely  to  be  met  with.  Doubtless  old  broken  sticks, 
ragged  fan  leaves,  and  faded  tassels  which  would  now  have  been  veritable  treasures 
were  swept  away  as  rubbish,  as  each  successive  fashion  demanded  a  new  mode. 

As  in  the  art  of  lace-making,  so  with  regard  to  the  invention  of  the  fan,  several 
different  countries  claim  to  be  the  first.  India,  China  and  Japan  all  have  legends 
which  claim  to  have  reference  to  the  poetic  or  accidental  discovery  of  the  use  and 
charm  of  this  important  weapon  in  female  coquetry. 

The  fan,  together  with  a  parasol  and  fly-flap,  is  frequently  mentioned  in  ancient  The  fan 
Sanscrit  poems,  and  was  one  of  the  Royal  attributes  of  the  gods  and  demi-gods  of  gfed  *s  a 
the  Hindoo  heaven.  Others  seem  to  have  been  the  fore-runners  of  the  graceful  attribute. 


64 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Screen- 
shaped  fans 
edged  with 
Point 
d'Espagne 
were  used  in 
the  i6th 
and  iyth 
centuries. 

A  special 
kind  of  fan 
used  only  by 
married 


Portrait  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  in  lace -trimmed  coif, 
ruff,  and  cuffs.  She  holds  in  her  hand  a  fan — 
the  only  present  a  subject  was  in  those  days 
permitted  to  give  to  the  Sovereign. 

folding  lace  leaves  of  a  later  date.  Pheasant  feathers  were  used  in  China  for  Royal 
fans  as  early  as  two  thousand  years  before  Christ. 

Feathers  compose  the  fan  with  which  that  famous  fashion  leader,  Queen 
Elizabeth,  is  represented  in  one  of  her  portraits  ;  this  is,  as  far  as  we  know,  the 
earliest  English  representation  of  a  fan  in  English  portraiture.  The  Chinese 
folding  fan,  said  to  have  been  suggested  by  the  folded  wings  of  a  bat,  was  not 
introduced  into  Europe  until  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century,  and  the  ladies  of 
Milan,  Florence,  Venice,  and  Padua,  which  were  then  the  fashion  leading  cities 
of  the  world,  all  wore  feather  fans,  such  as  is  shown  in  Elizabeth's  portrait,  with 
or  without  a  tiny  mirror  in  the  centre. 

In  Italy,  Carpaccio  painted  many  fans  in  detail  in  the  sixteenth  century,  and 
from  his  pictures  we  find  that  the  famous  Point  d'Espagne  gold  and  silver  lace 
was  much  used  as  edging  to  the  screen-shaped  fans  of  the  period.  The  fan 
itself  was  usually  of  silk  brocade,  stretched  upon  a  frame,  the  lace  enrichment, 
in  the  form  of  a  straight-edged  insertion  resembling  that  we  now  call  galloon,  being 
used  in  strips  and  bands  across  the  brocade  as  well  as  at  the  edges. 

It  is  this  type  of  lace-trimmed  fan  which  is  shown  in  the  well-known  painting 
of  "  Titian's  Daughter-in-law,"  in  the  Dresden  gallery.  It  is  a  curious  fact, 
reminding  one  that  there  was  much  etiquette  at  this  time  in  fan-wearing  and 
fan-using,  and  that  such  a  lace-trimmed  fan  was  worn  only  by  married  women.  The 


LACE    FANS. 


only  known  specimen  still  in 
existence  is  in  a  private  collection 
in  France.  The  lace  on  this  rare 
curio  is  the  Venetian  Point  of 
the  sixteenth  century  ;  it  forms 
an  edging  to  a  cut  open-work 
piece  of  parchment  stretched 
upon  a  frame  and  supported  by 
a  thick  stick  which  forms  the 
handle. 

In  the  time  of  Henry  VIII. 
in  England,  long-handled  fans 
for  out-door  use  were  employed 
by  both  men  and  women.  "  The 
gentlemen  had  prodigious  fans, 
and  they  had  handles  at  least 
half  a  yard  long ;  with  these 
their  daughters  were  often-times 
corrected."  Fans  were  used  by 
the  judges  on  circuit,  possibly 
to  stir  the  hot,  close  air  of  the 
court.  More  than  one  engraving 
by  Abraham  Bosse  shows  a  fan 


Portrait  of  a  Lady,  with  lace-trimmed  folding 
fan.  She  wears  the  lace-trimmed  tabs  of  the 
bodice  and  corsage  trimming1  of  lace  charac- 
teristic of  the  period.  By  W.  Hollar,  1639. 


Portrait  of  a  Woman,  by  Kembrandt, 
1640. 

wielded  by  a  man.  This  famous  depictor 
of  the  manners  and  modes  of  the  seven- 
teenth century  shows  us  many  folding  fans 
trimmed  with  lace.  Narrow  bands  of 
insertion  occur  at  the  upper  edge  of  the 
mount  and  occasionally  at  intervals  across 
the  lower  part. 

The  parchment  lace,  as  it  was  called   Parchment 
in    England    when    silk,    gold   or    silver  ^fan- 
thread  was  twisted  over  the  thin  strips  of  trimming, 
cartisane  or  card  board  which  formed  the 
main  lines  of  the  design,  greatly  enhanced 
the  value  of  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth 
century  fans  ;    and  the  prices  sometimes 
paid  for  them  appear  somewhat  extrava- 
gant, considering  the  difference  in  value  of 
money  in  those  days  ;   the  sticks  of  such 
fans,     however,    were     not     infrequently 
studded    with     precious    stones.       1,200 
crowns  was  given  for  a  fan  presented  by 

F 


66 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Fan-leaf  of  Needle-point  Lace,  made  at  the  Presentation  Convent,  Youghal,  Co.  Cork. 
Nineteenth  century. 

Queen  Elizabeth  to  Queen  Louise  of  Lorraine;  one  of  Queen  Elizabeth's  fans  was 
valued  at  ^"400.  It  was  this  Queen  who  decreed  that  a  fan  was  the  only  present 
which  a  subject  could  give  to  the  sovereign,  and  we  believe  that  the  old  law  still 
holds  good.  In  reading  the  general  history  of  each  fine  variety  of  lace,  a  knowledge 
is  gained  of  fan-lace  history,  for  it  has  no  separate  story  with  regard  to  its 
construction. 

The  designs  in  lace  fans  have  always  varied  according  to  the  prevailing  fashion 
of  the  day  since  the  seventeenth  century,  when  lace  was  first  used  for  the  purpose 
of  making  whole  lace  fans.  Renaissance  arabesques  and  richness  of  workmanship 
distinguished  the  early  eighteenth  century  specimens,  and  the  firm  yet  delicate 
laces  such  as  Rosaline  Point  and  Burano  laces  of  the  period  were  especially 
suitable  for  the  purpose,  which  demanded  lightness  combined  with  strength. 

When  medallions  appeared  in  furniture,  wall  decoration,  and  the  designs  for 
brocades,  they  were  adopted  by  lace  fan  designers  with  enthusiasm.  To  Boucher 
and  Watteau  many  painted  fans  have  been  attributed,  perhaps  more  specimens 
than  ever  left  the  masters'  studios ;  be  this  as  it  may,  painted  fans  are  seldom 
signed.  The  graceful  medallion  mode  was  specially  successful  when  applied  to  lace 
designing,  and  it  is  still  largely  used  in  the  Duchesse  lace,  which  frequently  shows 
medallions  of  exquisitely  fine  work  ;  delicate  sprays  of  needle-point  are  worked  on  to 
the  vrai  reseau  or  fine  needle-point  net  ground,  such  medallions  showing  up  with 
excellent  effect  amongst  the  bobbin-made  sprays  of  the  main  fabric. 

English  Point  d'Angleterre  also  shows  frequent  examples  of  the  medallion 
period  in  the  designs,  open  work  fillings  being  frequently  used  to  lighten  large 
closely  sewn  surfaces.  This  style  is  well  seen  in  the  fan  belonging  to  the  Empress 
Eugenie. 


LACE    FANS. 


67 


Lace  of  Fan-leaf  Italian  design,  made  at  Seaton,  South  Devon,  under  the  direction  of 
Miss  Audrey  Trevelyan.     Late  nineteenth  century. 

Lace  has  occasionally  been  used  in  conjunction  with  painting  in  fan-decoration  ; 
a  gauze  medallion  being  laid  into  a  frame-work  of  lace,  and  the  plain  fabric  painted 
with  a  cupid,  a  garland  of  flowers,  or  some  other  graceful  design  after  the  Boucher 
method. 

Applique  laces  of  various  descriptions  have  been  much  used  for  fan-leaves.  A 
transient  fancy  demanded  white  or  cream  modes  on  black  machine-made  net  or 
chiffon ;  the  effect  was  certainly  light  and  graceful,  but  lovers  of  the  fine  hand- 
made lace  would  doubtless  prefer  so  dainty  a  toy  as  a  fan  to  be  entirely  composed 
of  hand  work.  The  graceful  effect  of  the  old  brides  ornees,  characteristic  of  the 
now  extinct  Argentan  factory,  are  none  too  delicate  for  the  groundwork  of  a  fan, 
nor  is  the  laborous  hand-made  net  of  Burano  over-fine  for  the  leaf  which  is  to  waft 
soft  zephyrs  to  Beauty's"  cheek. 

Modern  hand-made  lace  leaves  are  frequently  mounted  on  antique  sticks  with 
excellent  effect,  for  the  evolution  of  the  artistic  fan  stick  had  reached  a  point  in 
the  reign  of  Louis  XV.  which  has  never  since  been  equalled.  Wood,  ivory,  gold, 
silver,  tortoiseshell  and  lacquer  were  used,  besides  precious  stones,  pearls  and  hand- 
carved  metals  ;  no  time  or  expense  was  spared  in  their  enrichment.  The  fragile 
leaf  of  the  period,  which  was  generally  of  carefully  prepared  vellum  called  chicken 
skin  (a  somewhat  misleading  name,  as  it  is  not  the  skin  of  chicken),  has  generally 
perished  long  before  the  more  substantial  sticks,  so  that  with  a  fine  modern  lace 
fan  leaf  the  antique  supports  are,  as  it  were,  given  a  new  lease  of  life. 

Enormous  quantities  of  fans  were  made  in  the  eighteenth  century,  for  the 
beauties  of  that  period  were  never  without  a  fan  indoors  or  out,  winter  or  summer ; 

F  2 


A  lace  frame 
with  gauze 
medallions. 


Antique 
sticks  used 
with  modern 
lace  leaves. 


68 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


and  the  present  restricted  use  of  the  fan  in  England  to  the  gentler  sex,  and, 
generally  speaking,  to  the  social  hours  in  the  evening,  is  of  comparatively  recent 
date.  In  countries  such  as  Japan,  the  fan  is  not  an  article  of  luxury  but  one  of 
daily  domestic  use  ;  not  only  does  the  peasant  woman  fan  herself  as  she  goes  about 
her  household  tasks,  but  the  peasant  labourer  carries  his  fan  in  one  hand  while  he 
wields  his  hoe  with  the  other,  and  the  shopkeeper  fans  himself  as  he  serves  his 
customers.  But  with  such  fans  of  general  utility  we  have  nothing  to  do,  for  lace 
fans  have  always  been  articles  of  luxury.  There  are  no  peasant  laces  used  for  such 
a  purpose  :  only  the  finest  and  best  of  hand-made  lace  is  usually  selected  as  suitable 
for  the  fan-leaf. 


Lace  Fan-Leaf  in  white  net  ground  and  black  silk  pattern,  worked  at  the  School  of  Art,  Cork. 

Nineteenth  century. 


PEASANT    LACES. 


study    of    the    peasant    laces    ot 
Europe     forms     a     most    interesting 
contradiction  to   the   old  saying   that 
"  Fashion     wears     out     more     than 
women    do,"   for    in    the    lace    caps, 
fichus     and     aprons     of     the     agri- 
cultural  classes    there   is   evidence   of    the   most 
intense     conservatism,     which     in     many     cases 
enables   us   to   see    exactly   what   was   worn   by 
women  and   girls   of  the  same  district  hundreds 
of  years  ago. 

Lace  has,  since  the  sixteenth  century,  formed 

an  essential  part  of  the  costume  of  the  Normandy  peasants  ;  the  bourgoin  the  most 
elaborate  of  the  peasant  caps,  being  frequently  handed  down  from  generation  to 
generation.  It  is  formed  of  a  stiff  buckram  shape  covered  with  starched 
muslin,  which  is  frequently  embroidered  ;  this  part  of  the  head-dress  is  a  relic 
of  the  ancient  horns  or  cornettes  of  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  centuries ; 
at  the  apex  of  the  erection  is  pleated  muslin  or  cambric,  edged  with  rich  [lace; 
long  lappets  of  the  same  flow  behind,  far  below  the  waist  of  the  wearer.  The 
lace  used  was  at  one  time  the  bone  or  bobbin  lace  made  in  the  district.  Later, 
as  the  designs  and  methods  improved,  so  the  lace  ornamenting  the  caps  of 
the  peasants  became  richer,  for  a  woman  prided  herself  on  the  fineness  of  her 
lappets,  and  time  was  not  thought  to  be  ill-spent  in  fabricating  the  many  yards 


Peasant 
women  pride 
themselves 
on  the  fine- 
ness  of  their 
lace  lappets. 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


The  native 
village  of  the 
wearer  is 
shown  by  the 
shape  of  her 
cap. 


which  would  show  the  skill  and  worldly  prosperity  of  the  family,  in  which  the 
lace  would  be  an  heirloom  for  many  generations.  The  peasant  lace  of 
Normandy  was  finest  in  the  eighteenth  century,  when  from  Arras  to  St.  Malo 
more  than  thirty  centres  of  manufacture  were  established,  and  the  peasant 
women  of  the  whole  district  were  engaged  in  the  industry. 

Dentelle  de  la  Vierge  is  the  pattern  most  used  by  the  peasants  in  the  trimming 
of  their  caps.  It  is  made  with  rather  an  elaborate  ground  on  the  pillow,  with 
bobbins  ;  it  has  a  double  ground,  while  a  simple  seme  pattern  takes  the  place  of 
a  more  intricate  design.  The  edge  is  straight,  and  the  width  usually  varies  from 
2|  to  7  inches. 

The  laces  of  Havre  were  declared  by  Corneille  in  1707  to  be  "  tres  recherche," 
and  in  an  inventory  of  the  household  effects  of  Colbert,  Points  du  Havre  appear 
as  trimmings  on  his  bed-linen.      In  Normandy  there  are  almost  as  many  different 
shaped    caps    and   different    modes   of  wearing  the 
peasant    laces    as    there    are    villages ;    for    though 
their  elaboration  is  gradually   modified    (and  within 
the  last  half-century  the   changes   have  been    more 
than    in   the    two .  centuries    before),    yet    still    the 

shapes    of    the    caps    are    most    quaint    and    effec- 
tive,   and .  each     villager     is    proud    to    show    the 

district    of    her    birth    by    the    shape    of    her    cap. 

The   fan-like,   lace-trimmed   halo    of    the    Boulogne 

fisher-girl    is    familiar    to    many,    and   the    peasant 

of    Walmegnier      wears     similar     headgear.      The 

Bretagne  caps  are,  as  a  rule,  profusely  trimmed  with 

lace,   while    in    some   of   the   districts    are    still    to 

be  seen    the    frilled    skirts   turned    over   the    heads 

and   shoulders   of  the   wearer,   like    those   worn   at 

Chioggia.     The  effect  is   quaint   and   not  altogether 

graceful,    though    there    is    something     fascinating 

about   the   full   flounce,   or   sometimes   fringed  edge 

of  the  skirt,  as  it  droops  over  the  face.  "As  can  be 

imagined,  this  custom  gives  ample  opportunity  for  the 

wearing  of  pretty  petticoats,  and  the  coquettish  peasant-girls  are  not  slow  to  avail 

themselves  of  the  occasion  for  the  display  of  pink,  blue  or  crimson  under-skirts. 
The  peasant  woman  of  the  He  de  France  wears  a  lace-trimmed  fichu  besides 

the  flat  close-fitting  cap  with  enormous  cambric  lappets  looped  up  at  the  ears. 

Huge,  too,  are  the  lace  and  cambric  ear-pieces  to  the  caps  of  the  peasant-girls 

of  Wallen  (Val  d'Hereno),  Switzerland.      A  flat,  saucer-like  straw  hat  is  worn  on 

the  top  of  the  head,  so  that  it  is  only  underneath  the  hat,  close  to  the  sides  of 

the  head,  that  there  is  any  chance  of  displaying  elaboration  in   the  cap.      The 

rest   of  the   dress  of  the  Wallen  peasant  consists  of  a  short,  coloured  skirt,  and  a 

zouave  jacket   with   sleeves.      This   opens   to   show   a   white   muslin   chemisette 

which  is  occasionally  embroidered  in  white  ;  there  is  also  a  large  and  full  white 

apron  reaching  nearly  to  the  bottom  of  the  dress. 


Cap  of  a  Domestic  Servant  at 
Caen,  in  the  eighteenth 
century. 


PEASANT    LACES.  71 

The  dress  of  the  men  at  the  same  place  reminds  one  of  the  ordinary  garments 
of  the  well-to-do  citizen  of  the  eighteenth  century,  with  the  three-cornered  felt 
hat,  long  waistcoat  embroidered  in  coloured  silks,  and  full-skirted  coat. 

Most  of  the  caps  in  Southern  France,  together  with  those  of  Germany  and 
Austria,  are  formed  of  printed  cotton,  velvet,  or  silk  kerchief;  while  embroidery  of 
an  elaborate  description  of  brightest  coloured  silks  takes  the  place  of  the  dainty 
muslin  lace  and  embroidered  cambric  with  which  we  chiefly  have  to  do. 

In  Germany  the  hair  is  displayed  to  great  advantage,  and  long  plaits,  fre- 
quently reaching  far  below  the  waist,  form  a  very  pretty  feature  in  the  peasant's 
costume.  These  plaits  are  sometimes  tied  at  the  ends  with  bright  multi-coloured 
ribbons,  the  most  garish  and  brilliant  tints  being  mingled  so  that  the  flowers  in 
the  pattern  of  the  ribbon  should  appear. 


Rouen  Children  in  Lace-trimmed  Caps. 

In    Switzerland    also    the    young    unmarried  women  wear   their    hair   plaited,   The 
but  not  coiled  round  the  head  in  most  districts.     At  the  Apen-zell  (St.  Gallon)  the  Jf *i"8Sr  "* 
costume  is  most  elaborate  ;  the  short  skirt  of  printed  cotton  in  bright  colours  is  indicates  the 
very  full ;  the  apron  of  different  patterns,  but  also  coloured,  is  tied  on  with  bright 
ribbons;    the  stockings  are  of  black  or   dark   brown;    the   shoes,   without   heels, 
resembling  the  Italian   pianellas,   are  white,  with    white  heels.      The  chemisette 
is  of  white,  with  elbow  sleeves,  and  the  cap  black  wired  net,  or  lace,  which  stands 
out  from  the  head  like  a  halo.     The  dark  bodice  is  laced  across  the  chemisette  with 
coloured  ribbons. 

Kerchiefs  are  the  head-coverings  of  the  Bulgarian  peasant,  who  twists  the 
simple  bright-tinted  square  most  deftly,  so  that  it  becomes  a  well-fitting  and 
becoming  cap.  The  rest  of  the  Bulgarian  dress  consists  of  a  very  narrow  striped 
skirt,  the  effect  of  the  horizontal  lines  of  colour  in  the  material  still  further 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


In  Holland 
the  lace  caps 
are  -worn 
over  metal 
plates. 


Lace -trimmed  Cap  of  the 
Peasants  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Coutances, 
France. 


emphasising  its  want  of  width.  A  zouave  in  scarlet 
or  black,  with  loose  elbow  sleeves,  opens  over  a  white 
chemisette. 

In  Portugal  the  peasants  also  use  kerchiefs  on 
their  heads,  wearing  a  broad-brimmed  straw  hat 
over  for  shade.  Their  skirts  are  very  wide,  but  not 
accordian  pleated ;  the  feet  often  bare.  Sometimes 
white  muslin  or  lace  takes  the  place  of  the  head- 
kerchief. 

In  Spain  the  skirts  are  also  short,  and  often 
flounced  with  two  or  three  deep  volants  of  rich, 
black  lace.  The  lace  head-covering,  or  mantilla,  is 
a  distinctive  feature  of  the  costume,  and,  though  in 
the  eighteenth  century  it  was  almost  universally  worn 
by  high  and  low,  it  was  sometimes  replaced  by  a 
kerchief  on  the  head  in  the  case  of  the  very  poor. 
The  kerchief  flourishes  in  Denmark,  Sweden,  and 
Jutland,  where  it  is  sometimes  tied  in  the  most  pictur- 
esque—we had  almost  said  grotesque — manner;  while 

the  severe  handicap  for  even  the  prettiest  face  in  the  unbecoming  old  beaver 
"  topper "  of  Ringkjobing  and  Wales  makes  us  wonder  at  the  eccentricities  of 
personal  adornment. 

Perhaps  the  daintiest  and  most  effective  of  the  peasant  lace  headgear  is  that 
of  the  Dutch  woman,  not  only  on  account  of  the  fine  lace  used,  but  also  because  of 
the  unique  method  of  showing  it  off.  Surely  the  inventor  of  the  curious  ear-plates 
of  metal,  or  rather  metallic  skull  caps,  had  a  fine  sense  of  what  is  quaint  and 
effective,  besides  a  subtle  knowledge  of  the  joy  in  showing  one's  family  wealth  in 
lace  and  bullion  at  the  same  time.  Certainly  no  more  picturesque  sight  is  to  be 
seen  than  a  dozen  nodding  lace-covered  "  oorijzers  "  on  the  heads  of  the  women  as 
they  sail  lazily  down  one  of  the  waterways  of  Holland  on  their  way  to  the 
Haarlem,  Utrecht,  or  Delft  markets. 

The  great  drawback  to  this  delightful  headgear  is  the  ignoring  of  the  fact  that 
women  are  usually  supplied  with  hair ;  no  room  is  there  for  such  head-covering 
beneath  the  metal  "  oorijzer,"  and  doubtless  the  close-fitting  cap  is  extremely  bad 
for  the  growth  of  the  hair,  for  a  tiny  knob  no  bigger  than  a  walnut  is  usually  seen 
at  the  back  beneath  the  folds  of  lace. 

The  other  variety  of  Dutch  cap  with  which 
most  of  us  are  familiar,  from  the  portraits  of 
the  young  Queen  of  Holland,  who  selected  this 
type  when  photographed  in  the  national  costume, 
is  that  which  has  large  gold  or  silver  bosses 

on  either  side  of  the  face,  to  secure  the  dainty 

IO/^Q     «-^     ^-V,^     u~~j  riii        r  -11       r     ^1  MI  A.ve     Maria     Lace.        A     simple 

lace    to    the    head,   a    little    frill   ot    the    pillow-  bobbin  lace  much  made  by 

made  fabric  depending  from  the  close-fitting  cao  the    Peasants   near    Dieppe, 

j    r  „•  ,,       ,     •     i     ,  •  and    used    for    edging    their 

and  tailing  over  the  hair  behind.  cambric  and  lawn  cap-strings. 


PEASANT    LACES.  73 

The  subject  of  peasant  jewellery  is  in  itself  a  large  and  interesting  one, 
which  would  fill  many  pages,  but  one  or  two  fine  examples  may  be  mentioned 
here,  for  it  is  impossible  to  entirely  ignore  so  important  an  adjunct,  which 
frequently  adorns  the  lace  cap,  tippet,  or  apron. 

The  enormous-headed  pin,  frequently  enriched  with  secondary  gems,  such  as 
the  Dresden  garnets,  are  seen  in  wear  at  Unterwalden.  The  hair  is  usually 
frizzed  in  front,  no  cap  is  worn,  and  the  pin  is  stuck  through  the  hair,  which  is 
dressed  low,  so  that  the  jewelled  ornament  shows  near  the  nape  of  the  neck.  The 
sleeves  are  of  white  muslin,  caught  at  the  elbows  with  more  jewelled  filigree  work, 
and  silver  filigree  chains  and  buttons  ornament  the  front  of  the  bodice.  A  skirt 
in  parallel  bars  is  worn  with  an  apron  with  horizontal  stripes,  and  black  silk  lace 
mittens,  reaching  from  elbow  to  wrist  only,  complete  this  most  elaborate  gala 
costume. 

The  embroidered  net  fichu  worn  by  the  peasant  of  Ariege  is  a  very  dainty 
affair  ;  the  whole  dress  is  most  elaborate,  but  with  its  red  cloth  skirt,  black  silk  apron, 
black  bodice,  and  kerchief  of  white,  with  red  cross-stitch  embroidery,  over  which 
is  worn  the  embroidered  net,  the  whole  finished  off  with  a  tiny,  red  cloth  cap,  does 
not  include  elaborate  lace  trimming,  though  one  of  the  most  effective  surviving. 

Very  small,  too,  is  the  cap  worn  by  the  peasants  at  Berne ;  it  is  of  black  velvet, 
and  is  merely  the  foundation  for  a  dainty  bunch  of  artificial  flowers  ;  elaborate 
ribbon  strings  simulate  the  fastening-on  of  this  tiny  headgear,  but  in  reality  hang 
down  behind.  A  short-waisted  bodice  with  long,  tightly-fitting  sleeve,  is  worn  with 
this  cap,  and  an  embroidered  vest  is  laced  across  with  coloured  ribbons.  The  skirt 
is  very  full  and  short,  the  folds  being  accordian-pleated ;  the  apron  also  has 
many  folds.  White  stockings  are  worn  and  black  silk  garters  richly  fringed  ; 
embroidered  ribbons  tie  the  ends  of  the  long  plaits  of  hair  which  hang  down 
behind. 

At  Basle  also  is  worn  an  accordian-pleated  skirt  in  bright  colours  with  which 
the  full  black  apron  contrasts  well ;  a  white  kerchief  is  folded  across  the  breast,  and 
there  are  white  elbow  sleeves.  A  tiny  cap  is  worn,  varying  in  shape  according  to 
whether  the  wearer  is  married  or  unmarried  ;  on  this  depends  also  the  wearing  of 
the  hair  in  plaits  hanging  down  or  closely  coiled  about  the  head. 

Black  lace  is  much  used  on  the  dress  worn  by  the  peasants  around  Lucerne  ;  a  Black  lace  is 

black  flower  ornaments  the  flowered  cap,  which  is  small  and  round  ;    a  coloured  worn  b/  ™e 
i  •  u    peasants  at 

kerchief    is    worn    round   the   neck,   a   shot   silk   cr    bright-coloured   bodice   with   Lucerne. 

embroidered  ribbons  suspending  jewel  ornaments.  A  jewelled  girdle  is  sometimes 
worn  hanging  over  the  accordian-pleated  apron,  and  the  petticoats  are  very  short, 
showing  red  stockings  and  black  high-heeled  shoes. 

At  Como  and  in  the  districts  of  Northern  Italy  many  jewelled  pins  are  worn, 
stuck  into  a  velvet  knob  so  that  they  radiate  round  the  head  like  a  halo ;  the  rest  of 
the  dress  consists  of  a  short,  brightly  coloured  skirt,  generally  of  crimson  or  green  ; 
a  black  or  blue  apron,  lace  kerchief,  and  heelless  shoes  with  red  tips,  together  with 
white  or  red  stockings. 

The  graceful  dress  worn  by  the  peasant  women  in  and  near  Rome  is  perhaps 
better  known  than  any  other,  through  its  frequent  representation  by  artists ;  the 


74 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


folded  cloth  of  white  linen,  sometimes  handsomely  fringed  or  decorated  with  lace,  is 
a  most  distinctive  feature.  Large  gold  earrings  are  worn,  and  a  white  chemisette 
with  full  elbow  sleeves  is  seen  under  a  short  sleeveless  corslet  which  is  often 
embroidered  with  coloured  galoon  and  laced  across  with  coloured  ribbon.  A  long 
narrow  apron  of  thick  material  is  usually  worn  with  a  short,  full,  coloured  skirt. 
White  stockings  with  pianellas  usually  complete  the  toilette  of  the  picturesque 
Roman  girl. 

In  other  parts  of  Italy  the  kerchief  is  worn  on  the  head  with  graceful  effect. 

In  Russia  the  head-gear  of  the  peasant  is  most  distinctive,  being  made  of  a 
high,  stiff,  funnel-shaped  crown  of  black  or  coloured  material,  which  is  sometimes 
fur-trimmed.  A  long  coat  or  pelisse  is  the  outer  covering  of  both  men  and  women 


Lace-trimmed  Caps  worn  by  the  Peasants  in  the 
Environs  of  Eouen. 


Elaborate 
lace-trimmed 
caps  are 
worn  in 
Dalmatia. 


in  Russia  ;  and  though  peasant  jewels  are  worn,  and  silver  coins  and  charms  are 
seen  on  the  bodices,  the  necessary  wrapping-up  and  thickness  of  the  materials 
prevent  the  picturesque  effect  which  is  so  strongly  marked  in  the  dresses  of 
the  peasant  inhabitants  of  less  rigorous  climates. 

The  hat  worn  by  the  Bourgognes  is  much  trimmed  with  the  bobbin  lace  made  in 
the  district ;  it  is  of  velvet,  lace  surmounting  the  crown  and  being  laid  flat  on 
the  brim  ;  lace  lappets  depend  on  either  side,  and  a  lace-trimmed  cambric  cap 
is  worn  beneath  this  elaborate  structure. 

The  Dalmatian  cap  is  also  lace-trimmed,  though  not  actually  fashioned  of  lace ; 
it  is  of  red  cloth,  in  the  shape  of  a  small  turban  ;  there  is  no  embroidery  on  the 
cloth,  but  elaborate  trimmings  of  ribbon  and  lace  are  used. 


PEASANT     LACES.  75 

The  Silesians  huge  headgear  somewhat  resembles  that  worn  by  the   peasants  Stiffened  lace 
of  Dalecarlia,  in  that  the  lace  is  used  as  a  protection  against  the  sun.     Over  a  white  *?r"Js  f  sun' 
cap  a  close-fitting  velvet  one  is   worn,  and  upon  this  is  fixed   the   stiffened   lace  Silesia, 
which  forms  a  kind  of  sun-shade  or  awning. 

Little  lace  of  any  importance  has  ever  been  made  in  Sweden,  except  that 
which  is  executed  by  the  peasants  for  their  own  use.  The  thread  used  is  coarse, 
and  the  work  is  done  on  a  pillow  with  unusually  large-sized  bobbins.  The 
patterns  are  those  in  vogue  two  centuries  ago,  and  are  of  the  stiff  geometrical  type. 
Lace  is  only  worn  by  married  women  on  the  caps  and  fichus,  and  is  so  starched 
that  it  stands  erect,  or  can  be  bent  slightly  as  a  protection  from  the  sun.  This 
lace  is  seldom  washed,  the  starching  process  only  being  repeated  when  more 
stiffening  is  required  ;  the  rich  coffee  tint  is  considered  a  great  beauty  as  showing 
the  great  age  and  the  durability  of  the  fabric,  which  latter  quality  is,  in  fact, 
extraordinary. 

Besides  the  lace  made  by  the  Dalecarlian  women  for  personal  adornment,  there 
is  much  plaiting  of  threads  done  for  the  ornamentation  of  their  household  linen. 
This  resembles  the  old  Genoese  Macrame,  and  the  modern  fabric  of  that  type  ;  some- 
times the  ends  of  the  threads  are  left  hanging  loose  to  form  a  kind  of  fringe  ;  some- 
times they  are  knotted  up  and  cut  off,  so  that  the  resemblance  to  ordinary  lace  is 
closer. 

Holesom,  or  cut- work,  was  much  made  in  Sweden  in  the  cottages  of  the  peasants, 
but  though  large  quantities  were  executed,  little  ever  came  into  the  market,  as  the 
peasants  preferred  to  have  their  own  handsome  stock  of  house  linen  rather  than  the 
money  such  labour  would  fetch. 

In   Germany  much    handsome  pillow-made  lace,  cut-work,  and  drawn  thread   The  house' 
work  is  also  used  by  the  peasants  in  ornamenting  their  household  linen.      The  old   hold  linen 
Flemish  grounds  are  the  favourites  for  the  laces  on  account  of  their  solidity  ;    such  German 
lace-trimmed  linen  would  be  held  as  heirlooms  through  successive  generations.    Since  peasants 
the  fine  ground  of  Lille  and  Mechlin  came  in,  the  lace  has  been  much  less  durable,  and   witjj  jace< 
the  peasants  have,  therefore,  practically  discontinued  making  it  for  their  own  use. 

In  Greece,  little  lace  is  worn  on  the  caps  of  the  peasants,  but  both  gold  and 
silver  gimp  lace  is  made  for  ornamenting  the  bodices ;  this  is  of  twisted  threads  of 
cotton  covered  with  the  metal,  and  is  usually  worn  sewn  down  the  seams  of  the  coats 
and  bodices  of  the  men  and  women.  Sometimes  this  lace  is  of  bright-coloured  silk, 
instead  of  the  gold  and  silver,  and  is  equally  effective. 

Bisette  lace  was  a  favourite  one  with  the  peasants  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Paris,  especially  during  the  seventeenth  century  ;  it  was  made  of  coarse  and  loosely- 
twisted  thread,  usually  unbleached,  and  of  narrow  width  ;  yards  of  it  were  employed 
in  the  trimming  of  the  elaborate  caps.  This  thread-made  Bisette  is  quite  distinct 
from  the  gold  and  silver  lace  of  the  same  name,  which  was  sometimes  further 
ornamented  with  thin  plates  of  metal. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE    TRANSPORT    OF    LACE. 

ORMERLY  the  lace  trade  was  entirely  in  the  hands  of 
pedlars,  who  carried  their  wares  in  packs  to  the  principal 
towns  in  Europe,  and  to  the  large  country  houses,  where 
experience  had  taught  them  there  was  a  likelihood  of  ready 
sale.  This  lasted  until  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth 

Lace  sold  by       itf .  century.     Laces  were  sold  by  pedlars  in  England  in  the  time  of 

Pedlars.  Henry  VIII.     In  a  play  written  in   1544,  by  one  John  Heywood, 

the  contents  of  a  pedlar's  box  are  enumerated:    "Laces  knotted, 
laces  round  and  flat  for  women's  heads,  sleeve  laces."     In  *'  Fool 
of  Quality,"  written  in  1766,  "silk,  linen,  laces"  are  found  in  the 
box  of  a  murdered  pedlar.     The  custom  of  carrying  lace  round  from 
T--MU         house  to  house  still  survives  in  the  cheap  machine-made  varieties 
found  in  the  baskets  of  pedlars  of  the  present  day,  and  in  the  boot- 
laces,   stay-laces,   braids,    and    tapes  which    are   also   carried;    this 
branch   of   the   lace    trade    having   more  intimate   connection   with 
needle-point  and  pillow  laces  in  remote  times  than  it  has  at  present, 
when  the  tendency  towards  specializing  is  shown  in  every  trade.     In  the  counties 
of  Buckingham  and  Bedford,  and  in  some  parts  of  Devonshire,  the  lace  box  is. 
often  carried   from  house  to  house  still,  and  at  the  country  inns  and  hotels  it 
often   makes  its  appearance  at   the  end   of  a   meal ;    the   waiter  carrying  round 
the  wares,  or  allowing  the  women,  who  frequently  make  as  well  as  sell  the  lace, 
admittance  to  the  room. 

This  custom  is  also  permitted  in  some  parts  of  Belgium.  At  Spa  the  system  of 
colporteurs,  which  dates  back  to  remote  times  in  Greek  history,  still  survives,  and 
early  travellers  in  the  country  make  frequent  mention  of  lace  purchasing  in 
their  diaries.  King  Christian  IX.  of  Denmark  made  many  purchases  of  lace  while 


Portrait  of  Marie  Antoinette  (1755-1793)  from  the  picture  by  Mme.  Vigee 
Lebrun  at  the  Musee  at  Versailles.  Photograph  by  Neurdein.  Blonde 
lace  trims  the  corsage  and  skirt. 


THE     TRANSPORT     OF    LACE.  77 

travelling  in  Schleswig,  entries  such  as  the  following  constantly  appearing  in  his 
journal  from  1609  to  1625  :  "  Paid  to  a  female  lace- worker  28  rixdollars,  to  a 
lace-seller  for  lace  for  the  use  of  the  children."  In  a  letter  to  his  chamberlain  he 
specially  mentions  a  recent  purchase,  and  orders  in  an  autograph  letter  that  out  of 
a  piece  of  Tonder  lace  four  collars  of  the  same  size  and  after  the  manner  of  Prince 
Ulrik's  Spanish,  must  be  cut ;  and  they  must  contrive  also  to  get  two  pairs  of 
manchettes  out  of  the  same.  Alas  !  that  dressmakers'  troubles  had  already  begun 
at  this  early  date. 

In  1647  there  was  a  great  lace-making  epoch  in  Jutland,  and  the  fabric  was  made  "Lace    post- 
by  men  and  women  of  the  upper  as  well  as  the  lower  classes.     The  lace  was  entirely  JPen"in 
sold  by  "lace  postmen,"  as  they  were  called,  who  carried  their  wares  throughout 
Scandinavia    and    parts   of    Germany ;    this   service,    as    its    name    implies,   was 
carried   on   with    considerable   method   and    regularity,   and   was  not  the   casual 
porterage  of  independent  itinerants,  but  a  business  organised  by  the  body  of  lace- 
makers  it  served. 

The  great  lace  dealer,  Mr.  Jens  Wulff,  Knight  of  the  Danebrog,  who  did 
much  for  the  lace  industry  of  Denmark,  is  thus  spoken  of  in  his  son's  book  :  "  He 
began  the  lace  trade  at  the  end  of  the  last  century,  and  first  went  on  foot  with  his 
wares  to  Mecklenburg,  Prussia  and  Hanover ;  from  thence  the  lace  was  consigned 
to  all  parts  of  the  world.  Soon  he  could  afford  to  buy  a  horse,  and  in  his  old 
age  he  calculated  he  had  travelled  on  horseback  more  than  75,000  English  miles, 
or  thrice  round  the  earth." 

In  the  reign  of  Elizabeth,  in  England,  lace  began  to  find  its  way  into  general 
shops  and  stores  all  over  the  country,  for  its  purchase  was  no  longer  confined  to  the 
court  and  high  nobility  to  whom  it  was  brought  by  lace  merchants.  In  the  shop 
list  of  John  Johnston,  merchant  of  Darlington,  for  instance,  mention  is  made  of 
"loom"  lace,  black  silk  lace,  and  "statute"  lace,  together  with  such  articles  as 
pepper,  books,  and  sugar  candy.  Amongst  the  articles  for  sale  at  John  Forbeck's 
shop  at  Durham  there  are  "  velvet  lace,  coloured  silk  chagne  lace,  petticoat 
lace,  Venys  gold,"  and — "  terpentine." 

At  the  mercers'  shops  in  large  towns  lace  was  to  be  purchased,  but  as  the  Lace  bartered 
itinerant  sellers  in  neighbourhoods  where  lace-making  was  carried  on  were  always  to  a*  fairs. 
be  found  content  with  a  smaller  profit  on  their  wares,  many  continued  to  buy  from 
them  long  after  lace  was  to  be  had  elsewhere.     Lace  was  sold  at  fairs — this  was 
especially  the  case  when  the  fabric  was  the  result  of  work  done  by  the  cottagers  in 
their  own  homes.      At  the  fairs  and  on  market  days  much  selling  and  bartering 
of  lace  was  done. 

Frequently  special  orders  were  given  to  the  lace-makers  who  carried  out  the 
designs  required  by  their  patrons.  A  lady  who  desired  lace  would  go  to  a 
cottage  and  arrange  with  the  worker  for  the  execution  of  her  order ;  this 
ideal,  but  necessarily  restricted,  method  was  adopted  all  over  England  wherever 
practicable. 

In  Italy,  as  a  rule,  at  the  present  day,  the  agents  of  the  large  firms  go  to  a   Agents 

central  point  in  a  lace  district  at  certain  times  of  the  year  and  collect  the  lace  collect  the 

,  i       <•  i    •  L        iace  ln  •Italy. 

produce  of  the  peasants,  it  being  always  understood  that  the  fabric  must  reach  a 


78  HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

certain  standard  of  excellence,  or  it  will  be  rejected.  All  lace  imperfectly  made  or 
soiled  is  rejected  by  firms  whose  reputation  is  an  important  matter  to  them. 
But  the  inferior  laces  are,  of  course,  not  wasted ;  other  merchants  buy  such 
goods,  send  them,  as  a  rule,  to  spas  and  watering  places  where  people  congregate 
who  have  more  money  than  discrimination,  and  a  ready  sale  is  found  for  them. 
The  barter  for  such  goods  is  generally  cotton  or  linen  material  for  working,  orders 
for  polenta  and  other  food  stuffs,  rather  than  coin.  This  system,  which  gives  rise 
to  much  cheating,  is  still  flourishing  in  some  remote  villages  in  Devonshire,  "truck," 
or  payment  in  kind,  being  given  to  the  workers  instead  of  money. 

Sometimes  the  thread  is  given  out  by  foremen  to  the  workers  in  a  certain 
district,  and  an  account  must  be  made  of  the  amount  received  ;  thus,  if  one  pound 
of  flax  thread  be  received,  half  a  pound  of  lace  must  be  handed  over,  as  about  half 
is  allowed  for  waste. 

The  history  of  smuggling  in  connection  with  lace  is  a  large  subject,  for  the 
unlawful  passing  and  "running"  of  lace  has  always  had  an  intimate  connection 
with  the  history  of  lace  in  any  country  in  which  it  has  been  made  ;  innumerable  are 
the  stories  of  how  stringent  laws  for  the  protection  of  the  home  lace  industry  have 
been  cleverly  evaded. 

Perhaps  the  most  systematic  smuggling,  and  that  of  the  most  ingenious  order, 
was  carried  on  between  France  and  Belgium  in  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  when  France  was  using  much  Belgian  lace.  Dogs  were  trained  to  serve  the 
smugglers'  purpose.  In  France  the  animal  was  fed  well,  petted,  caressed,  and 
made  extremely  happy ;  then  after  a  time  he  was  taken  across  the  frontier  into 
Belgium,  where  he  was  starved  and  otherwise  ill-treated.  After  a  short  time  of 
wretchedness,  the  skin  of  a  larger  dog  was  fitted  to  his  body,  the  intervening 
space  filled  with  lace  and  sewn  up,  and  the  dog  allowed  to  escape.  He  naturally 
made  direct  for  the  old  home  across  the  frontier  in  France  where  he  had  been  so 
kindly  treated,  and  was  soon  relieved  of  his  contraband.  The  enormous  extent 
of  this  traffic  will  be  judged  by  the  fact  that  between  1820  and  1836  many  hundreds 
of  such  smuggler  dogs  were  destroyed,  a  reward  of  three  francs  for  each  being 
given  by  the  French  Custom  House  when  they  at  last  got  wind  of  this  ingenious 
device  for  evading  the  duties. 

In  the  eighteenth  century  many  people  lost  their  lives  in  the  risky  trade  of 
lace  smuggling.  Though  foreign  laces  were  prohibited  in  England  the  Court  ladies 
persisted  in  wearing  them,  and  if  they  could  not  succeed  in  smuggling  them 
themselves,  they  got  others  to  do  so.  After  1751  extraordinary  severity  and 
surveillance  seem  to  have  been  resorted  to  in  order  to  put  a  stop  to  the  unlawful 
importation  of  lace;  a  writer  ot  this  period  remarks  that  "not  a  female  within 
ten  miles  of  a  sea-port  that  was  in  possession  of  a  Mechlin  lace  cap  or  pinner, 
but  her  title  to  it  was  examined."  Lord  Chesterfield  writes  to  his  son  in  1751, 
"  Bring  only  two  or  three  of  your  lace  shirts,  and  the  rest  plain  ones."  It  was 
no  uncommon  thing  for  the  milliners'  and  tailors'  shops  to  be  raided  by  the 
Revenue  officers ;  and  on  such  an  occasion  whatever  articles  of  foreign 
manufacture  were  found  were  confiscated. 

George    III.  ordered  all  the  dress   materials   worn   on    the   occasion  of  the 


THE     TRANSPORT     OF    LACE. 


79 


marriage  of  his  sister,  the  Princess  Augusta,  to  the  Duke  of  Brunswick,  to  be  of 
English  make.  The  guests  and  attendants  took  not  the  slightest  notice  of  the 
King's  wishes,  but  gave  their  orders  freely  for  prohibited  stuffs,  which  they  knew 
would  be  forthcoming  if  the  prices  paid  were  high  enough.  Three  days  before  the 
wedding  the  Customs  officers  visited  the  court  milliners  of  the  day  and  carried 
off  all  the  foreign  cloths,  gold,  silver  and  lace.  In  the  same  year,  a  seizure  of 
contraband  French  lace,  weighing  100  lb.,  "was  burnt  at  Mr.  Coxe's,  conformably  Contraband 

to  the  Act  of  Parliament."    Women  were  arrested  with   Lace  ™as 

•    •  r  burnt, 

pies    containing    valuable    foreign    laces ;    a     Turk's 

turban  containing  stuffing  worth  /"go  in  lace  was 
seized.  The  journals  of  1764  are  full  of  accounts  of 
seizures  by  the  Customs  for  contraband  transport  of 
lace. 

High  and  low  took  to  smuggling.  A  gentleman 
of  the  Spanish  Embassy  had  thirty-six  dozen  shirts, 
with  fine  Dresden  ruffles  and  jabots,  together  with 
much  lace  for  ladies'  wear,  taken  from  him.  A  body  Lace  was 

to  be  conveyed  from  the  Low  Countries  for  interment   snj"8:gled  in 

11  r         i  cotiins, 

in    England    was    found    to    have    disappeared    with 

the  exception  of  the  head,  hands,  and  feet ;  the  body 
had  been  replaced  by  Flanders  lace  of  immense  value. 
So  common  was  the  trick  of  smuggling  in  coffins  that 
when  forty  years  later  the  body  of  the  Duke  of 
Devonshire  was  brought  over  for  burial,  the  officers 
not  only  opened  and  searched  the  coffin,  but  poked  the 
body  with  sticks  to  see  that  it  was  not  a  bundle  of 
lace.  It  is  said  that  the  High  Sheriff  of  Westminster 
successfully  "  ran  "  £6,000  worth  of  French  lace  in 
the  coffin  of  Bishop  Atterbury,  who  was  arraigned 
for  Jacobite  intrigue  when  Bishop  of  Rochester,  and 
who  died  in  exile  in  Paris  in  1731. 

The  spies  of  the  Custom  House  were  everywhere. 
Mrs.  Bury  Palliser  relates  that  at  a  dinner  party  in 

Brussels  early  in  this  century  a  lady,  the  wife  of  a  Member  of  Parliament  for  one 
of  the  Cinque  Ports,  told  the  gentleman  sitting  next  to  her  that  she  dreaded  the 
seizure  by  the  Revenue  Officers  of  a  very  beautiful  Brussels  veil  in  her 
possession.  The  gentleman  at  once  offered  to  take  charge  of  it  for  her  "  as  he 
was  a  bachelor,  and  no  one  would  suspect  him."  The  lady  accepted  the  offer 
aloud,  for  she  saw  one  of  the  waiters  listening  to  the  conversation  ;  she  at  once 
guessed  he  was  a  spy,  and  sewing  the  veil  in  her  husband's  waistcoat,  succeeded 
in  getting  it  safely  to  London.  Her  partner  at  dinner,  crossing  two  days  later,  was 
subjected  to  the  most  rigorous  search. 

All  this  proves  that  the  people  who  desire  to  wear  lace  will  have  it  whatever 
the  laws,  and  however  active  may  be  the  spies  and  Revenue  Officers  ;  free  trade 
principles  alone  can  put  a  stop  to  smuggling. 


One  of  the  Fashion  Puppets, 
3  feet  in  height,  such  as 
were  dressed  in  Paris  and 
sent  to  all  the  capitals  of 
Europe  to  display  the 
modes  of  the  day.  From 
the  Correo  Museum, Venice. 


8o 


HISTORY    OF     HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Fashion 
puppets 
dressed  in 
lace. 


Special  per' 
mission  was 
given  for 
the  entry  of 
fashion  dolls 
to  our  ports 
in  war  time. 


In  writing  about  the  transport  of  lace,  mention  must  be  made  of  puppets  or 
dolls  which  were  dressed  with  lace  in  order  to  show  the  fashions  of  the  seventeenth 
and  eighteenth  centuries.  The  word  puppet  is  derived  from  poupee,  a  baby  or 
doll.  The  figure  used  instead  of  the  modern  fashion  magazine  was  usually  below 
life  size,  made  like  the  puppets  or  fantoccini  used  in  the  plays.  In  1721,  Le  Sage 
wrote  a  play  for  puppets.  The  well-known  puppet  show  scene  in  "  Don  Quixote  " 
will  be  remembered.  The  marionettes  were  constructed  of  wood  and  pasteboard, 
with  faces  of  composition,  sometimes  of  wax.  In  the  puppet  for  dancing  purposes 
each  figure  was  suspended  with  threads  to  a  bar  held  in  the  hand  of  a  hidden 
performer,  who  posed  and  gave  action  to  the  figures  with  the  other  hand. 

In  the  eighteenth  century,  Flockton's  show  presented  no  fewer  than  five 
thousand  figures  at  work  at  various  trades.  At  country  fairs  puppets  were  used 
for  depicting  historical  scenes,  such  as  "  The  Crossing  of  the  Alps  by  Napoleon  "  ; 
these  dolls  were  sometimes  moved  by  clockwork. 

A  few  years  ago,  an  elaborate  model  was  made  of  a  staircase  in  the  Doge's 
Palace  in  Venice ;  every  detail  of  architecture  and  decoration  was  accurately 
carried  out,  the  whole  being  made  to  scale.  On  the  staircase  were  no  fewer 
than  one  hundred  figures  represented  in  the  correct  costume  of  the  time,  which 
included  the  most  elaborate  laces,  all  of  the  real  kinds  used  at  the  period.  The 
scene  represented  was  the  execution  of  the  Doge  Marino  Falieri.  The  executioner 
was  there,  the  officers  in  accurately-made  uniforms,  even  the  spectators  in  the 
costly  lace  and  brocade  dresses  of  the  time. 

The  puppets  used  for  the  display  of  fashions  in  lace  were  of  the  same  make  and 
description.  The  custom  of  dressing  up  lay  figures  in  the  modes  of  the  moment 
commenced  in  Paris,  where,  in  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.,  one  called  La  Grande 
Pandore  was  exhibited  in  the  court  dress  of  the  period,  or  in  some  fashion 
conformable  with  grande  tenue.  This  dress  was  changed  with  each  change 
of  fashion,  just  as  the  life-size  puppets  in  the  shop  windows  of  the  present 
day  show  off  the  latest  creations  from  Paris  and  elsewhere.  A  second  doll,  smaller 
in  size,  called  La  Petite  Pandore,  was  exhibited  at  the  Hotel  Rambouillet  clothed 
in  morning  deshabille,  this  word  meaning  the  less  ornate  garments  fashionable 
for  morning  and  home  wear,  and  by  no  means  indicating  the  careless  and 
slovenly  character  of  loose  dress  which  the  word  deshabille  has  in  modern  times 
come  to  mean. 

When  a  fresh  fashion  came  in,  the  last  poupee  was  sent  off  to  Vienna, 
Italy,  England  and  other  countries  where  people  were  as  desirous  as  now  of 
knowing  the  latest  Paris  fashions.  So  important  was  the  matter  considered  in 
England,  that  when  British  ports  were  closed  in  war  time,  special  permission 
was  given  for  the  entry  of  the  "  Grands  Courriers  de  la  Mode."  These  dolls 
were  dressed  with  the  finest  laces  France  and  Italy  could  produce.  As  late  as 
1764,  it  is  said  "there  has  been  disembarked  at  Dover  a  great  number  of 
dolls,  life-size,  dressed  in  the  Paris  fashions  in  order  that  the  ladies  of  quality  can 
regulate  their  taste  on  the  models." 

The  custom  dates  back  much  earlier  than  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.    M.  Ladouise 


THE     TRANSPORT     OF    LACE.  Si 

of  Paris,  in  1391,  makes  entries  for  expenses  connected  with  sending  a  fashion 
doll  to  the  Queen  of  England.  In  1496,  one  is  sent  to  the  Queen  of  Spain ;  in  1571, 
a  third  is  sent  to  the  Duchess  of  Bavaria.  In  Miss  Frier's  "  Henri  IV."  we  are  told 
the  King  writes  in  1600,  before  his  marriage  to  Maria  de'  Medicis  :  "Frontenac 
tells  me  that  you  desire  patterns  of  our  fashion  in  dress.  I  send  you  therefore  some 
model  dolls." 

It  was  the  custom  to  expose  such  puppets  for  public  view  at  fairs;  in  Venice,  at 
the  annual  fair  held  in  the  Piazza,  of  St.  Mark  on  Ascension  Day,  a  doll  was  always 
shown  whose  dress  and  laces  served  as  a  model  for  the  fashions  of  the  year. 
This  was  kept  later  in  a  shop  on  the  Ponte  dei  Bareteri,  which  is  to  be  seen  at 
the  present  day;  it  was  called  La  Poupa  di  Franza,  and  was  placed  in  the  window  so 
that  all  might  model  their  garments  on  the  fashions  shown  by  the  puppet  of  the 
moment. 

In  his  picture  of  Paris,  Mercier  mentions  the  puppet  of  the  Rue  Saint  Honore. 
"  It  is  from  Paris  that  the  most  important  inventions  in  fashion  give  the  law  to  the 
universe.  The  famous  doll,  that  precious  puppet,  shows  the  latest  modes.  One 
passes  from  Paris  to  London  every  month  and  goes  from  there  to  expand  grace  to 
all  the  Empire.  It  goes  North  and  South,  it  penetrates  to  Constantinople  and  to 
St.  Petersburg,  and  the  pleat  which  has  been  made  by  a  French  hand  is  repeated 
by  every  nation  who  is  a  humble  observer  of  the  taste  of  the  Rue  St.  Honore." 


Bobbin  Lace,  5J  inches  wide,  showing  transition 
stage  of  the  Scallops  between  Pointed  and 
Straight  which  began  to  take  place  in  the 
seventeenth  century. 


Keep  your 
lace  dry  and 
warm. 


CHAPTER    X. 

THE  CARE  OF  LACE. 

INE  needle-point  and  bobbin  lace  should  be  kept 
in  a  warm,  dry  atmosphere.     Much  old  lace  has 
been  damaged  by  being   locked    away  in  cold, 
damp  sacristies  in  the  cathedrals  and  churches, 
where  hoards  of  ecclesiastical  lace  accumulated 
in  the  days  when  the  finest  specimens  of  Spanish 
point,    laboriously-made    Valenciennes,     Mechlin, 
Brussels,   and    Italian    laces    were    all    made   for 
Church   use.     A  species   of  mould    attacks   lace, 
especially   black   lace,   if 
kept   without    air  ;     this 
mould  is,  in  reality,  a  living 
parasite,  which  grows,  feeding 
on  damp,  as  the  mould  in  a 
damp  preserve  closet  or  apple- 
room  will  form  and  grow.     If  laces  are  not  used  they 
should   be   taken  out    of  their   drawer,    shaken,    and 
frequently  exposed  to  air. 

Moth  does  not  attack  lace  made  with  flax  thread, 
but  should  be  guarded  against  if  specimens  of  Trina 
di  Lana  or  Shetland  point  are  to  be  stored.  There 
is  no  need  for  blue,  white,  pink,  or  mauve  paper,  as 
long  as  the  receptacle  in  which  the  lace  is  kept  is 
dust-proof,  and  air  is  frequently  allowed  access  to 
preserve  the  colour  and  kill  parasitic  growths. 

ADAPTING    LACE. 

More  good  lace  has  been  ruined  by  dressmakers 
than  by  all  the  other  destructive  agencies  put  together. 

Madame  la  Mode  has  no  veneration,  and  will  cause  Plastron   made   of    Floral 

. .      r  Forms  cut  from  a  ragged 

the  finest  Alenson  or  Burano  point  to  be  cut  if  it  suits  Floonce  and  joined  with 

her  whim  that  a  certain  form  shall  be  made  in  lace  for  new  Needle-made  Bars. 


An    unusually    Complete    Specimen    of    the    Lace-trimmed    Christening    Suits    in    use    until    the 
close    of    the    eighteenth    century,    consisting    of    cap,    frock    trimming    in    two    pieces,    c 
and  mittens.      The  lace  is  Belgian  bobbin-made  ft  re"seau. 


THE    CARE    OF    LACE. 


Border  of  Needle-point  Lace  (made  of  three  pieces,  one  narrower  and  two  wider,  stitched 
together).  The  patterns  of  the  fragments  are  of  the  same  period,  Louis  XV.,  and 
show  how  narrow  laces  can  be  effectively  joined.  Width  7  inches. 


lace  a  new 
lease  of  life. 


which  the  piece  was  not  originally  intended.  Here  should  step  in  the  ingenuity 
required  for  adapting  lace  without  destroying  the  fabric.  Is  the  piece  too  long  ? 
The  superfluous  part  can  be  placed  between  the  material  and  the  lining.  Is  it 
too  wide  ?  The  same  plan  can  be  resorted  to.  Corners  can  be  mitred  by  means 
of  lace  stitches,  so  that  no  join  is  visible  ;  revers  made  with  the  surplus  width  at 
the  lower  end  hidden,  instead  of  cut. 

Adaptation  is  not  necessarily  destruction  ;  sometimes  it  gives  new  life  to  a  worn-  Give  ragged 
out  and  unusually  ragged  lace.  The 
Devonshire  lace -makers  recognise 
this  as  a  regular  branch  of  their 
industry  ;  many  a  beautiful  veil, 
shawl,  and  flounce  is  concocted  from 
old  fragments  sent  to  them  in  a 
seemingly  hopeless  condition.  They 
begin  by  carefully  cutting  out  of  the 
torn  pieces  the  designs  of  the  old 
work.  These  are  spread  upon  a 
paper  pattern  of  the  shape  required. 
The  modes  and  fancy  stitches  are 
restored,  any  flower  which  is  re- 
quired is  supplied,  and  the  whole  is  joined  together  on  the  pillow.  We  recently 
saw  a  handsome  black  Honiton  flounce  being  so  treated  with  perfect  success  ; 
black  Honiton  is  extremely  rare,  and  is  now  never  made. 

G  2 


Two  Dessert  D'Oyleys  made  from  fragments  of 
lace  cut  from  ragged  borders. 


84  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

Old  point  lace  can  be  given  a  new  lease  of  life  if  the  ground  has  given  way  ;  and 
this  is  always  the  first  part  to  wear  on  account  of  the  weight  of  the  solid  arabesques 
and  leaves.  These  should  be  detached  from  the  ragged  ground,  placed  on  a  pattern 
of  the  desired  form,  then  connected  with  fresh  bars  worked  as  nearly  like  the  old 
bars  as  possible. 

Many  laces  which  are  too  narrow  to  use  effectively  can  be  joined  so  that  the 
widening  is  almost  imperceptible. 

Do  not  put  Fragments  of  coarse  lace  can  be  used  in  various  ways,  and  merely  require  neat 

your  torn         stitching  and  ingenuity  in  arrangement  to  make  them  into  graceful  articles  of  utility 
rag-bag.          instead  of  useless  rags. 


Table-Centre  or  Tray-Mat,  made  from  fragments 
of  lace.     The  ground  is  of  white  linen. 

TO  RESTORE  LACE. 

Before  mending  lace  it  should  be  ascertained  exactly  of  what  make  it  is,  more 
especially  with  regard  to  the  ground,  as  this  is  usually  the  part  which  first  shows 
signs  of  wear.  If  the  needle-point  or  pillow  lace  design  is  mounted  on  machine- 
made  net  the  lace  is  easily  repaired,  and  the  fabric  does  not  deteriorate  in  value  in 
the  process ;  but  if  the  lace  has  a  needle-made  ground  or  one  made  with  bobbins,  a 
large  proportion  of  the  value  of  the  lace  is  lost  if  the  design  is  remounted  on 
machine-made  ground.  The  needle-made  grounds  should  be  repaired  to  the  last ; 
of  these  are  old  Brussels,  Burano,  Point  Gaze,  Alen?on,  Argentan,  Mechlin,  old 
Devonshire,  Flemish,  and  Lille.  Sometimes  lace  is  made  on  the  pillow  with 
bobbins,  and  filled  in  with  a  needle-made  ground,  or  between  bobbin  sprigs 
medallions  of  needle-made  point  are  let  in,  as  in  Duchesse  ;  in  such  a  case  the 
needle-made  net  ground  must  be  mended  and  not  cut  away. 


THE    CARE    OF    LACE. 


To  Mend  Cut  Work. 

The  holes  should  be  darned,  the  button-holing  or  over-sewing  of  the  pattern  Special 
being  afterwards  done  according  to  the  pattern  on  the  darned  foundation.     If  the  ^eca 
hole  is  large  it  is  sometimes  worth  while  to  sacrifice  a  few  inches  in  the  length  of  mending 
the  piece  in  order  to  patch  ;  this  is,  of  course,  an  extreme  measure,  but  it  is  better 
to  have  a  shorter  length  intact  than  the  longer  unusable,  on  account  of  holes. 


To  Mend  Darned   Netting. 

Cut  out  the  broken  meshes  and  net  new  ones  in  their  place,  unpick  the  darned 
design  beyond  the  junction  of  the  new  and  old  mesh,  and  darn  the  pattern  in  again. 


To  Mend   Needle=made  Laces  with  Bar  Grounds. 

Restore  the  ragged  parts  of  the  pattern  by  cutting  out  the  fillings  in  the 
centre,  and  working  in  new  fillings  that  match  the  old  in  design.  Button-hole 
round  the  cordonnet,  cut  out  the  ragged  bar  ground  where  necessary,  and  work  new 
bars  in.  Simple  bars  are  made  by  passing  two  or  three  strands  across  the  space,  and 
covering  them  closely  with  button-hole  stitch. 


To  Mend   Needle=made  Lace   with  Machine  Net  Ground. 

Clean  the  lace,  unpick  the  pattern  from  the  old  torn  ground,  mend  the  design, 
putting  in  the  fancy  stitches  where  they  are  incomplete  ;  tack  the  design  on  blue 
paper  right  side  downwards. 
Lay  a  new  piece  of  net  that 
matches  the  old  as  nearly  as 
possible  over  the  sprays  and 
tack  it  to  the  edge  of  the 
paper  ;  then  with  a  fine  needle 
and  lace  thread  sew  it  round 
each  spray,  taking  up  minute 
portions  of  the  edge  and  not 
the  centre  of  the  work.  Sew 
round  the  design  on  the  right 
side,  after  untacking  from  the 
paper,  a  pearl  edge  of  tiny  loops. 
Lay  the  lace  with  design  upper- 
most on  a  board  covered  with 
flannel  and  rub  each  leaf,  spot 
or  flower,  and  along  each  spray, 

with  the  end  of  an  ivory  crochet  hook  to  make  the  raised  work  stand  up 
in  relief.  Bobbin  lace  applique  is  mended  with  machine-made  net  in  just  the 
same  way. 


Bobbin   Lace   before   Mending. 


86 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


The 

cleansing 
process. 


To  Mend   Needle=made  Laces  with  Needle=made  Net  Grounds. 

Mend  the  fillings  by  imitating  the  stitches  in  the  design  ;  do  not  cut  away  any  of 
the  ground,  but  join  the  fine  lace  thread  at  a  corner  of  the  hole,  as  the  mesh  will  not 
otherwise  pull  into  shape  ;  fasten  the  thread,  if  possible,  into  the  fit  de  trace  or 
outline  of  the  design.  Insert  the  needle  at  about  the  distance  of  one-sixteenth  of  an 
inch,  bring  it  out  as  for  button-hole,  but  twist  the  thread  once  round  it,  so  as  to  make 
a  twisted  strand ;  work  to  the  end  of  the  space,  and  at  the  end  of  the  row  fasten 
the  thread  to  the  lace  with  a  strong  stitch,  and  sew  over  and  over  the  threads  back 
to  the  commencement,  putting  two  twists  into  each  loop. 

To  Mend   Bobbin   Laces  with   Bobbin  Grounds. 

These  f  are  the  most  difficult  of  all  laces  to  restore,  as  they  must  be 
repaired  on  the  pillow.  The  bobbins  are  passed  into  the  meshes  beyond  the  rent, 
and  the  new  work  will  then  resemble  the  old.  In  mending  bobbin  lace  great  care 
should  be  taken  to  exactly  match  the  old  thread,  as  much  damage  can  be  done  to 
delicate  fabric  by  using  too  strong  a  thread,  which  tears  away  the  old  pattern. 

When  mending  tape  guipure  it  is  often  advisable  to  darn  the  pattern  before 
restoring  the  bobbin  bars. 

To  Clean  White  and  Tinted   Lace. 

Place  the  lace  to  be  cleaned  on  a  smooth  board  covered  with  linen,  pin  it  with 
small  fine  pins  on  to  the  linen  which  has  previously  been  firmly  nailed  down  to  the 
board,  then  dab  the  lace  with  warm  water  by  means  of  a  sponge  ;  the  fabric  must 
on  no  account  be  rubbed,  only 
dabbed.  Dissolve  half  an  ounce 
of  the  best  primrose  soap  in  two 
pints  of  water  and  dab  the  lace 
again  with  the  sponge  soaked 
in  soapy  water  until  it  is 
perfectly  clean.  Rinse  the  soap 
away  by  dabbing  with  warm 
clear  water  and  leave  the  lace 
to  dry  after  most  of  the  moisture 
has  been  removed  by  means  of 
a  dry  sponge.  Old  laces  should 
never  be  ironed  or  stiffened. 

If  the  lace  is  so  thick  that 
dabbing  with  a  sponge  will  not 
remove  the  dirt,  it  may  be 
placed  in  an  enamelled  iron 
saucepan  in  cold  water  in  which  Bobbin  Lace  after  Mending, 

best    Primrose  soap  has  been 

dissolved  in  proportion  of  two  ounces  of  soap  to  two  pints  of  water.  Bring  it  to 
boiling  point,  then  remove  the  lace,  rinse  in  clear  water  and  pin  down  to  a  linen- 
covered  board. 


THE     CARE    OF    LACE.  87 

To  Colour  Lace. 

The  right  colour  for  old  lace  is  that  of  pure  unbleached  thread.  Saffron-tinted 
lace,  butter-coloured  laces  and  other  outrages  on  good  taste  need  not  be 
mentioned  in  connection  with  needle-point  and  bobbin  lace  ;  they  are  occasionally 
demanded  by  fashion,  but  there  are  always  machine-made  varieties  to  supply  the 
demand. 

It  is  not  in  good  taste  to  affect  lace  "  Isabeau,"  a  colour  much  worn  recently ; 
this  is  a  greyish  coffee  colour,  or  in  plain  English  the  colour  of  dirt,  the  name 
of  the  queen  who  showed  her  devotion  to  her  lord  by  vowing  to  change  no  body 
linen  until  his  return  from  the  wars,  having  been  given  to  it. 

To  renew  the  unbleached  effect  of  white  lace  it  can  be  delicately  tinted  with  tea 
by  laying  it  in  water  in  which  tea  has  been  infused. 

To  Clean   Black  Lace. 

Pin  down  upon  a  linen-covered  board,  as  described  lor  cleaning  white  lace, 
then  dab  with  vinegar  instead  of  soap  and  water,  leaving  it  to  dry  on  the  board. 
If  the  lace  is  mouldy,  which  defect  black  lace  is  very  subject  to,  place  it  in  a  warm 
room  near  a  fire,  brush  with  a  fine  brush  and  dab  with  spirits  of  wine  until  all  sign 
of  the  mould  is  removed.  Leave  to  dry  pinned  on  the  board,  and  do  not  on  any 
account  iron  or  stiffen. 

There  is  no  method  of  dry  cleaning  lace  which  is  not  damaging  to  the  fabric ;   It  is  impos- 

when  effectual  dry  cleaning  is  done  acids  are  used,  and  it  is  inevitable  that  the  lace   sible  to  clean 

lace  effec- 

should  be  rotted  by  such  a  process.  tually  by  any 

dry  process 
•without 

How   to  Sew  on   Lace  without    Injuring. 

Needle-point  and  bobbin  lace  should  always  be  provided  with  a  footing  or 
engrelure,  that  is  a  narrow  band  or  straight-edged  insertion  which  is  usually  of 
coarser  quality  than  the  lace  border  or  flounce,  and  by  which  the  lace  is  sewn  on 
to  the  material  it  is  intended  to  decorate.  This  prevents  tearing  or  undue  dragging 
of  the  main  fabric.  The  footing  can  be  easily  renewed  when  worn  out  ;  it  should 
be  oversewn  not  too  closely  to  the  lace.  If  cuffs,  applique  collars  or  other  laces 
are  worn,  which  require  sewing  down  at  the  points  and  round  the  design,  the 
stitches  should  be  put  in  with  a  very  fine  needle  and  placed  at  least  half-an-inch 
apart ;  the  cotton  should  be  of  the  colour  of  the  lace,  not  of  the  material  on  to 
which  it  is  sewn. 

SOME     HINTS    ON    JUDGING    LACE. 

In  judging  lace  there  are  three  most  important  points  to  decide  :  — 

1.  Whether  the  specimen  is  needle-point,  bobbin,  or  machine-made  lace. 

2.  The  approximate  date  of  its  manufacture. 

3.  The  country  of  its  origin. 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


The  net 
ground  in 
hand'made 
lace  is  less 
even  than 
that  of  the 
machine- 
made  fabric. 


Is  it   Machine  made   Lace? 

i.  The  question  as  to  machine-made  lace  may  be  dismissed  in  a  few  words — 
the  threads  in  the  manufactured  article  have  a  twisted  and  compressed  look  which 
is  never  seen  in  hand  or  pillow  laces.  Buttonhole  stitches,  which  are  to  be  found 
in  such  infinite  variety  in  needle-point,  are  never  seen  in  machine  laces  ;  up  to  the 
present  time,  however  ingenious  may  be  the  reproduction  of  lace,  no  mechanism 
has  yet  been  invented  which  can  achieve  the  button-hole  stitch  in  its  simplest 
form. 

If  there  are  raised  ornaments  in  machine-made  lace  the  padding  is  worked  over 
and  over  straight :  in  hand-made  covering  the  stitches  always  slope. 

If  a  thread  in  machine-made  lace  is  unravelled  it  comes  out  easily  :  in  needle- 
point, on  the  contrary,  frequent  knots  impede  the  unravelling  of  the  thread,  and  in 
bobbin-lace  the  unplaiting  is  a  tedious  process.  The  mesh  ground  in  machine  net 
is  perfectly  round  and  even :  in  needle-point  lace  it  is  either  square  or  hexagon. 

The  plait  of  bobbin  lace  cannot  be  done  by  machine  except  by  the  Dentelliere 
which  was  invented  by  a  Frenchman  in  1881.  The  expense  of  producing  lace  by 
this  machine  is,  however,  as  great  as  that  of  making  bobbin  lace  by  hand. 


Needle-point  Ground. 
Much  enlarged. 


Bobbin-made  rfeeau 
— sometimes  called 
Lille  fond  claire — 
the  best  of  all 
Grounds.  Much 
enlarged. 


Needle-point  Toile. 
Much  enlarged. 


Bobbin-made  Plait. 
Much  enlarged- 


Bobbin-made  Ground 
Valenciennes.  Much 
enlarged. 


Is  it  Needle-point  or  Bobbin   Lace? 

In  judging  whether  the  specimen  is  needle-point  or  bobbin  lace,  the  gimp  or 
toile  should  decide  the  question.  When  looked  at  through  a  strong  magnifying 
glass  the  needle-point  gimp  will  be  seen  to  be  made  up  of  looped  threads ;  in  the 
case  of  pillow  lace  the  gimp  is  plaited. 

The  net-work  ground  of  the  lace  specimen  to  be  judged  supplies  another  test. 
In  the  needle-made  reseaux  the  threads  are  looped  up  to  form  the  mesh  :  in  the 
pillow-made  reseaux  there  is  a  continuous  flow  or  plaiting  of  the  threads.  If  a  small 
section  is  unpicked  the  thread  in  needle-point  is  found  to  be  a  single  one  :  in 
bobbin-made  ground  several  threads  are  used,  as  in  order  to  make  progress  they 
must  be  twisted  or  plaited. 


THE    CARE    OF    LACE.  89 

When  was  it  Made? 

2.  In  deciding  the  age  of  a  specimen  of  lace,  the  most  conclusive  test  is  made  Hand-made 
by  unravelling  a  single  flower  or  ornament  until  about  twenty  inches  of  the  thread  th.rea<*  ,was 
is  obtained  ;  if  there  is  no  join  in  this  length  nor  for  a  few  inches  beyond,  we  may  lengths  of 
be   sure  that   the  lace  was  made  after  the  beginning  of  the  last  century,  when  20  inches, 
machine-made  thread  was  first  used.     Before  that  date  all  the  thread  used  in  making 

lace  had  to  be  joined  at  least  every  twenty  inches,  because  the  worker  could  stretch 
no  further  from  her  distaff,  and  had  to  break  off  and  join  again. 

The  designs  varied  considerably  in  character,  according  to  the  date  of  the  lace, 
and  the  carrying  out  of  a  similar  design  will  be  a  sure  help  in  guiding  the  decision 
as  to  the  date  of  a  specimen.  Thus,  before  the  sixteenth  century  the  petals  and 
other  forms,  which  should  have  been  rounded,  were  all  angular.  In  the  seventeenth 
century  the  raised  picots,  or  fleuvs  volants,  were  diamond-shaped. 

The  brides  ovnees  alone  are  enough  to  date  a  piece  of  lace.  The  earliest  form 
of  bar  in  the  fifteenth  century  had  a  knot,  or  dot,  only  as  ornament  ;  in  the  sixteenth 
century,  a  double  or  single  loop;  in  the  seventeenth  century,  a  star. 

The  position  of  the  flower,  with  regard  to  the  edge,  also  indicates  the  century 
of  its  make. 

The  earliest  bar-joining  was  V-shaped,  in  perfect  simplicity.  Afterwards  a 
looped  bar  appeared  across  the  V,  intersecting  it.  Later  the  barettes  were  no 
longer  symmetrical,  but  were  closer  and  uneven,  like  the  bars  in  crackle  china. 
This  crackle  position  of  the  bar  was  introduced  at  the  end  of  the  seventeenth 
century. 

The  edging  of  lace  also  gives  indications  of  its  age.  Sharp  angles  in  the 
scallops  indicate  the  Middle  Ages ;  in  the  sixteenth  century  a  rounded  scallop 
came  in ;  in  the  seventeenth  century,  a  scallop  with  dots ;  in  the  eighteenth 
century,  a  large  scallop  alternately  with  a  small  one,  dots  being  in  the  centre  of 
each. 

Engrelures    or    footings    also  vary,   but    this  indication  is  not  a  safe  one   to  Engrelures 
trust  to  entirely,  without  other  evidence,  for  the  engrelure  is  frequently  renewed   or  footin2s. 
as  it  receives  hard  wear,  so  the  original  one  is  seldom  found  on  a  piece  of  antique 
lace.     All  old  engrelures  are  hand-made.     The  oldest  are  simply  a  series  of  crossed 
bars.     The  same  rules  with  regard  to  knots  and  picots  influence  these  bars  as 
those   of  the  bars  in  the  lace  fabric   itself.     Old  laces  always  have  flax   thread 
engrelures.       Modern   laces,    even    those   of  hand- made   workmanship,  generally 
have  cotton  thread  engrelures,  except  the  laces  made  in  Venice,  which  have  flax 
thread   engrelures   only.      So   that    the    Rosaline   and   Burano   lace  made  to-day 
will,  in  twenty  years'  time,  be  identical  with  the  Rosaline  and  Burano  points  made     ^    j~-*-k 
in  the  seventeenth  century. 

Where  was  it  Made? 

3.  Other  considerations    with    regard   to    the  age  of  a  specimen   piece    are 
involved  in  the  question  as  to  the  country  of    its  origin,  which  is,  perhaps,  the 
most  difficult  question  of  all  to  decide.     For  the  lace  workers  frequently  migrated 
to  other  countries,   taking  with  them  their  patterns  and  methods,  and  began  to 


go 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


practise  their  handicraft  in  their  adopted  country.  In  such  cases,  however,  there 
was  always  some  small  divergence  which  crept  into  the  original  method.  For 
instance,  the  workers  of  Alen9on  were  originally  taught  lace-making  by  Venetians, 
brought  into  the  country  by  Colbert  in  order  to  keep  in  France  the  enormous  sums 
spent  by  the  courtiers  on  Italian  laces.  At  first  the  early  Alencon  lace  made  at 
Lonray  can  hardly  be  distinguished  from  Venetian  point ;  but  after  a  time  a  new 
kind  of  ground  was  made,  fresh  stitches  were  invented,  and  a  century  and  a  half 
after  the  Venetian  lace  workers  had  taught  their  handicraft  to  the  French  workers 
Alencon  lace  had  a  character  of  its  own,  and  no  longer  resembled  Venice  point. 
Alencon  and  Argentan  were  made  until  fifty  years  ago  with  a  cordonnet  padded 
with  horsehair.  In  Venice  this  material  was  never  employed :  cotton  or  flax 
threads  always  formed  the  Italian  padding. 


Small  Collection  of  Old  Lace,  arranged  in  plush  trays,  fitted  into  a  specimen 
table.  On  each  label  are  written  particulars  of  the  date  and  variety 
of  lace. 


Mediaeval 
designs 
in  the 
i6th 
century. 


Up  to  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century  lace  patterns  were  in  the  mediaeval 
style — that  is,  symbolical  groups,  figures,  monsters,  sacred  animals,  and  trees  were 
introduced  into  the  design,  which  was  carried  out  in  hard,  square  lines  with  no 
flowing  rounded  forms  even  in  flowers  or  leaves.  The  same  form  was  repeated  many 
times  :  thus  a  tree,  a  fountain,  candelabra,  or  what  not,  will  be  constantly  seen 
with  the  small  motifs  between.  This  is  accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  one  worker 
made  one  section.  The  straight  joining,  which  was  the  only  one  known  at  that 
time,  necessitated  the  repetition  of  the  straight  line  of  the  tree  or  fountain.  After 
the  sixteenth  century  a  new  way  of  joining  was  found,  so  that  not  only  straight 
forms  but  round  ones  could  be  used  for  the  joins. 

Until  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  the  geometrical  style  of  pattern 
was  used,  squares,  triangles,  lozenges  and  wheels  formed  the  design. 


THE     CARE    OF    LACE. 


At  the  end 
of  the 
eighteenth 
century  the 
beauty  of 
lace  began 
to  decline. 


From  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  till  early  in  the  eighteenth,  the 
Renaissance  patterns  were  used,  with  flowing  lines,  wreaths,  garlands,  flowers,  and 
scroll  work  in  compact  patterns  or  connected  with  bride  and  buttonhole  grounds. 
It  was  at  this  time  that  point  and  bobbin  laces  were  the  most  used,  the  most 
elaborate,  and  the  most  beautiful. 

From  1720  till  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century  the  Rococo  style  was  used, 

and  stiff  patterns  and  crowded 
and  ungraceful  bouquets 
formed  the  motif.  Lace 
patterns  and  workmanship 
began  to  decline  in  beauty  at 
this  period. 

At  the  end  of  the  eigh- 
teenth century  the  Dotted 
style  came  in  ;  the  design 
seemed  to  melt  away,  the 
bouquets  became  sprigs  or 
mere  dots ;  rosettes,  tears  or 
insects  powdered  over  the 
surface,  replaced  a  continuous 
design  ;  and  drawn  muslin 
and  blonde  laces  began  to 
supplant  the  rich  old  needle- 
points. 

HOW  TO  ARRANGE  A  SMALL 
LACE  COLLECTION. 

It  is  extremely  important  How  to 

.  ,  .        ,    store  lace, 

to  store  lace  in  a  careful  and 

methodical  manner,  for  the 
fabric  in  some  cases  is  so 
delicate  that  the  undue  drag- 
ging and  crushing  which 
crumpled  folds  entail,  are  most 
damaging. 

Few  people  buy  lace  only 
from  the  collector's  point  of 
view.  Pleasure  in  its  beauty, 
interest  in  its  history,  or  the 
skill  shown  in  its  workmanship 

may  influence  the  choice  ;  but  its  use  as  a  personal  adornment  generally  has  some- 
thing to  do  with  its  purchase.  In  arranging  a  collection,  therefore,  it  is  important 
to  provide  for  the  necessity  of  constant  change  in  the  exhibits  ;  there  must  be  no 
gluing  down  to  coloured  paper  or  silk  to  show  the  design  as  has  been  recommended  by 
some  collectors,  for  this  precludes  the  possibility  of  using  the  lace  for  its  legitimate 
purpose,  besides  taking  away  half  the  grace  of  the  fabric  by  nullifying  its  flexibility. 


Lace  Cabinet  suitable  for  a  few  specimens.     On  the  lower 
shelf  are  stored  lengths  in  use  or  awaiting  cleaning  or  repairs. 


92 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


The  ideal  lace  cabinet  is  one  of  the  Chippendale  design,  of  French  make,  Empire 
or  Louis  period  ;  of  white  moulded  wood  or  whatever  other  style  suits  the  taste  of 
the  owner,  or  the  period  of  the  room,  whether  it  be  the  drawing-room,  the  boudoir, 
or  the  dressing-room  of  madame,  in  which  it  is  to  stand.  The  illustrations  we  give 
appeared  in  an  article  on  this  subject  in  the  Queen.  They  suggest,  but  do  not 
altogether  fulfil  all  the  require- 
ments of  the  lace  cabinet.  It 
matters  not  what  style  provided 
the  cabinet  be  provided  with 
a  cupboard  with  glass  doors, 
and  glazed  sides  if  possible, 
and  a  few  dust-proof  drawers. 
The  cupboard  should  be  lined 
with  velvet  or  satin  ;  the  best 
colour  for  displaying  lace  is 
violet  of  not  too  deep  a  shade, 
yet  with  no  tendency  to  red  in 
it.  Fancy,  or  the  exigencies 
of  harmony  with  the  other 
decoration  in  the  room,  may 
render  another  colour  desirable; 
silver-grey  satin  has  a  beautiful 
effect  under  lace  when  it  is 
perfectly  clean,  but  the  tint 
Isabeau  on  grey  satin  is  not 
pretty,  nor,  indeed,  on  any 
other  colour.  Red  of  a  rich 
cardinal  colour  is  effective,  but 
yellow  is  undesirable,  as  the 
colour  of  pure  unbleached  flax, 
which  is  the  natural  colour  of 
old  lace,  does  not  harmonise 
well  with  that  of  the  buttercup. 

Whatever  the  background, 
the  lace  should  be  pinned  upon 
it  with  sharp,  fine  steel  pins- 
Put  in  as  few  pins  as  possible, 
and  allow  the  lace  to  hang  in 


Old  Casket,  with  modern  lock  and  fresh  rose  satin  lining, 
used  for  storing  choice  specimens  of  Needle-point 
and  Bobbin  Laces. 


its  own  graceful  folds  if  it  be 
of  the  Alen9on  point  Gaze  and 
embroidered  net  variety.  If  old 

guipure  knotted  laces  and  other  thick  kinds  are  to  be  displayed,  they  should  be  laid 
out  flat,  and  the  escalops  firmly  pinned  against  the  wall  of  the  cabinet.  Arrange  the 
background  with  as  much  variety  as  possible.  Perhaps  an  insertion  of  guipure  may 
outline  the  top,  a  fine  Brussels  or  Argentan  lappet  hang  on  one  side,  while  a  Burano 
fan  is  set  sideways,  open  two-thirds  of  its  whole  extent.  If  a  Limerick  scarf,  a 


THE     CARE     OF     LACE. 


93 


Label  suitable  for  Specimen 
of  Lace  in  small  collection. 


Such  drawers   should   be 


Brussels  berthe  or  Venice  collar  be  in  the  possession  of  the  collector,  such  a 
specimen  should  drape  the  entire  background,  and  fan  and  lappets  be  displayed 
upon  a  shelf. 

It  is  a  great  convenience  when  the  shelves  are  movable  so  as  to  form  trays  ; 
they  can  then  be  slipped  out  of  the  cupboard  to  allow  of  the  examination  of 
any  particular  specimen  without  disarranging  the  whole. 

Small  pieces  of  flounce  or  edging  should  be  laid  across  in  straight  rows,  such  Sp 
"  majesty  of  ordered  lines  "  being,  however,  occasionally  broken  by  a  handkerchief,   °* 
folded  jabot,  or  half-open  fan.     Close  to  each  specimen 
should  be  a  plain   white  card,   on  which  are  written 
clearly:— (i)    The  kind  of   lace.     (2)  The  date  of  its 
manufacture  ;  as  shown  in  the  illustration. 

The  drawers  for  the  storing  of  lace  will  be  found 
most  useful  for  those  pieces  which  are  not  suitable 
in  size  or  rarity  for  display,  or  which  are  in  course 
of  washing,  mending,  or  making  up.  But  we  should 
advise  all  lace-lovers  to  insist  that  all  the  lace  not 
actually  in  wear  should  be  put  in  the  lace  cabinet. 

lined  with  cream  or  white  soft  satin,  pasted  or  tacked  against  the  wood,  and, 
further,  should  have  widths  of  the  protecting  material  tacked  to  the  upper  edge  of 
the  sides  to  be  drawn  over  and  tied,  like  the  sides  of  a  portfolio,  before  the  drawer 
is  shut. 

All  these  hints  on  the  arrangement  of  a  collection  are  equally  suitable  for 
large  and  small  accumulations ;  for  if  only  a  few  scraps  are  to  be  shown,  a  velvet- 
lined  specimen  table  with  tiny  drawer  can  be  used  with  perhaps  some  bon- 
bonnieres  and  patch  boxes,  which  will  gain  in  effect  from  their  proximity  to  the 
lace ;  or  if  large  quantities  of  lace  are  to  be  displayed,  larger  cabinets,  a  variety 
of  specimen  cases  and  tables  need  only  to  be  added.  In  the  latter  case,  however, 
care  should  be  taken  to  classify  the  laces  according  to  their  date  and  place  of 
origin  ;  for  example,  there  must  be  the  Flemish  cabinet,  where  Point  de  Flandres, 
Brussels,  and  Mechlin  are  shown  ;  the  Louis  cabinet,  where  Point  de  France, 
Alengon,  Argentan,  and  Valenciennes  are  displayed  ;  and  the  English  table,  where 
Devonshire,  Irish,  and  Buckinghamshire  pieces  are  to  be  seen.  The  tasteful 
arranger  will  doubtless  make  the  idea  complete  by  providing  for  her  Flemish  laces 
a  carved  receptacle  of  Flanders  oak,  for  her  French  laces  a  commode  or  Louis 
cabinet,  and  for  her  English  laces  one  of  Sheraton  design.  The  Italian  lace 
collection  would  be  best  shown  in  a  many-leaved  cabinet  on  a  pedestal  of  carved 
work;  the  leaves  when  closed  showing  the  form  of  one  of  the  carved  and  gilded 
lamps  which  are  so  characteristic  of  the  City  of  the  Lagoons. 


ecimens 
ot  lace 
should  be 
labelled. 


CHAPTER   XI. 

THE  LITERATURE  OF  LACE. 


In  1527 
the  first 
dated  pattern 
book 
appeared. 


ENERALLY  speaking,  the  Literature  of  the 
Art  of  Lace-making  may  be  said  to  com- 
mence with  the  pattern  books  designed  for 
the  use  of  the  lace-makers.  St.  Dunstan 
designed  patterns  to  be  executed  by  the  nuns, 
and  sometimes,  it  would  appear,  by  the  monks 
also  ;  the  monks  of  the  monastry  of  Wolstrope, 
in  Lincolnshire,  are  commended  for  their  skill 
in  needlework,  and  in  the  frontispiece  of  some 
of  the  early  pattern  books  of  the  sixteenth 
century  men  are  represented  working  at 
frames,  and  we  are  told  these  books  were 
written  "  for  the  profit  of  men,  as  well  as  of 
women." 

Several  books  inherited  from  monasteries  contain  no  letterpress  except  what 
is  required  to  explain  the  working  of  the  patterns ;  the  monks  would  hardly  have 

collected  the 
volumes  e  x  - 
cept  for  the 
purpose  of 
using  them. 

The  earliest 
dated  pattern- 
book  was  pub- 
lished in  Co- 
logne, in  1527, 
and  is  a  small 
octavo  volume 
with  forty-two 
plates  ;  the 
title  is  in 
Gothic  letters 
beneath  wood- 
Design  for  Reticella,  from  a  Pattern  Book  by  Vinciola.  Sixteenth  century.  cuts  represent- 
ing women  at 
work.  On  the  back  of  the  leaf  is  a  large  escutcheon,  the  three  crowns  of  Cologne 


THE    LITERATURE     OF    LACE. 


95 


in  chief ;  supporters,  a  lion  and  a  griffin;  below,  "  O.  Ecelix  Colonia,  1527.''  The 
patterns  consist  of  mediaeval  and  Arabesque  borders  and  alphabets,  some  on  white, 
others  on  black  grounds,  some  with  counted  stitches. 

Occasionally  there  is  a  dedication  in  verse,  as  in  an  undated  book  published  at 


Lyons.     In  this  the  patterns  are  mediaeval,  and  it  is  stated  that  the  book  is  for  the 
profit  of  tant  hommes  que  femmes. 

In  another  undated  Lyons  book  of  this  period  there  is  an  elaborate  patti 
representing  St.  Margaret  holding  the  cross  to  a  dragon. 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Special 
ballads 
written  for 
the  use  of 
lace'itiakers. 


In  a  book  published  in  Paris  in  1584  is  a  ballade  of  twenty-eight  lines.  This  is 
one  of  the  songs  sung  by  the  lace-makers  while  at  their  toil.  These  ballads,  or 
chansons  a  toile,  still  survive  amongst  the  Venetian  workers,  and  are  doubtless  used 
to  discourage  gossip,  which  hinders  work,  besides  bringing  minor  evils  consequent 
on  the  over-activity  of  unguarded  tongues. 


19!  > t  *"*  ^^»WM = m       \Wt 

^5HHI*nS 

Si^iNs 

'^m^iff^^^iy^^i 


In  the  silk-spinning  factories  in  Italy  at  the  present  day  the  women  are  not 
allowed  to  talk,  but  may  sing,  and  the  sweet  rhythmic  chant  which  rises  and  falls, 
led  always  by  the  acknowledged  leader,  is  very  beautiful  to  hear. 


THE     LITERATURE     OF    LACE. 


97 


The  eminent  Italian  pianist,  Signer  Giuseppe  Aldo  Randegger,  has  kindly 
composed  expressly  for  this  book  the  "  Nenia  "  which  is  given  on  pp.  100  and 
101  ;  the  words,  by  Eugenie  Randegger,  and  the  music  are  quite  characteristic 
of  the  old  tradition  in  connection  with  the  love  story  of  the  Venetian  maid, 
who,  while  waiting  for  her  absent  fisher  lover,  ornamented  his  net  by  twisting 
the  cords  into  a  rude  form  of  lace  work. 

The  volume  amongst  the  sixteenth  century  lace  books  which  was  most  popular 
with  the  ladies  of  the  French  Court,  for  whose  use  it  was  designed,  is  that  of  the 
Venetian,  Vinciolo,  to  whom  Catherine  de'  Medicis  granted  in  1585  the  exclusive 
privilege  of  making  the  collarettes  godronnees  (of  fluted  pattern)  which  she 
herself  introduced.  The  book  went  through  many  editions,  and  is  entitled  Les 
singuliers  et  nouveaux  pourtraicts  .  .  .  et  ouvrages  de  Lingerie.  Two  figures  representing 
ladies  in  the  costumes  of  the  period,  with  working  frames,  are  shown  on  the  title 
page.  The  work  is  in  two  volumes  ;  the  first  devoted  to  Point  Coupe,  showing 
beautiful  geometric  patterns  in  white  on  a  black  ground  ;  the  second  to  Lacis, 
the  subjects  being  in  squares,  with  counted  stitches  like  the  modern  Berlin  wool 
embroidery  patterns. 

The  reason  why  these  early  pattern  books  are  so  scarce  is  that  the  tracing,  or 
pricking,  of  the  patterns  with  the  metal  style  destroyed  the  paper  on  which  they 
were  printed.  They  are  much  sought  after  by  collectors  of  early  specimens  of 
wood  block  printing. 

The  pattern  books  being   costly   and  difficult    to   procure,  gave   rise   to  the  Lace  designs 
production  of  "  Sam  cloths,"  or  samplers,  when  several  different  designs  in  Lacis,  g^£  Cloths 
or  cut-work,  would  be  copied  by  a  child  on  to  the  more  durable  canvas.  or  samplers. 

Signer  Ongania,  of  Venice,  has  published  a  limited  number  of  facsimiles  of 
pattern  books  of  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries.  M.  Alvin  (Brussels, 
1863)  issued  a  brochure  upon  the  patterns,  and  the  same  year  the  Marquis  Girolamo 
d'Adda  contributed  two  bibliographical  essays  upon  the  same  subject  to  the  Gazette 
des  Beaux  Arts  (vol.  xv.,  p.  342,  and  vol.  xvii.,  p.  421). 

In  1661  was  written  the  celebrated  Revote  des  Passemens,  which  is  so  often 
quoted  in  order  to  fix  the  date  of  various  laces,  as  every  lace  of  any  importance  at 
this  period  is  mentioned  in  the  poem,  and  its  special  value  and  beauty  are  declared 
in  the  speech  it  makes. 

The  theme  of  the  work  represents  the  laces  as  fearing,  after  the  enactment  In  the 
against   luxury  of  dress  was  passed  in  the  seventeenth  century,  lest  they  would 
become  extinct  if  no  longer  used  as  an  article  of  dress.      They  determine  to  revolt,   lace  was 
assemble  in  battle  array,  and  make  courageous  speeches,  but  when  opposed  all  run 
away.     There  is  then  a  council  of  war,  when  Une  grande  Cravate  exclaims  : —  satire. 

//  nous  fattt  venger  cet  affront, 
Revoltons,  nous  noble  essemble. 

A  muster  roll  is  called  over,  when  Dentelles  de  Moresse,  Escadrons  de  Niege, 
Dentelles  de  Havre,  Points  d'Espagne,  and  many  others  march  forth  in  warlike 
array,  but  at  the  first  approach  of  artillery  all  surrender,  and  are  condemned. 
The  points  to  be  made  into  tinder  for  the  use  of  the  King's  Mousquetaires, 

H 


98  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

the  laces  to  be  converted  into  paper,  Gueuses  Passemens  and  silk  lace  to 
be  made  into  cordage  and  sent  to  the  galleys,  the  gold  and  silver  laces,  as 
authors  of  the  "  Sedition  "  (the  Sumptuary  laws,  which  provoked  the  revolt)  to  be 
"  burned  alive."  Finally,  through  the  intercession  of  Love,  the  laces  are  again 
restored  to  Court  favour.  This  trifle,  invented  for  the  amusement  of  the  courtiers, 
has  been  a  boon  to  lace  collectors  in  determining  the  dates  and  relative  values  of 
lace  in  the  seventeenth  century. 
Bibliography  Information  may  be  found  by  students  of  the  subject  in  the  following  books:  — 

ADDA  (Marquis  Girolamo  d') : 

Le  Lit  de  Castellazzo.    (Gazette  des  Beaux  Arts,  1863,  Vol.  XIV.  97.) 

Essai  Bibliographique  sur  les  anciens  modules  de  Lingerie,  de  Dentelles  et  de  Tapisseries.  Gazette  des 
Beaux  Arts,  1863,  Vol.  XV.  342,  1864,  Vol.  XVII.  421. 

ALVIN  (L.) : 

Les  anciens  Patrons  de  Broderies,  de  Dentelle  et  de  Guipure.    4to.    Bruxelles,  1883. 

AUBREY  (Felix): 

Rapport  sur  leb  Dentelles,  les  Blondes,  les  Tulles  et  les  Broderies,  fait  &  la  Commission  Francaise  du  Jury 
International  de  1'Exposition  Universelle  de  Londres.  8vo.  Paris,  1854. 

Dentelles,  tulles,  broderies,  et  passementeries.  Reports,  Paris  Exhibition  1867,  IV.  p.  233.  8vo. 
Paris,  1868. 

BELIN  (Antoine) : 

Sensuyent  lis  patrons  de  Messire  Antoine  Belin,  etc.  Small  4to.  28  designs  on  14  leaves  of  lace  patterns, 
16th  cent.  Lyons,  n.d.  (1525  ?) 

BOCK  (Franz) : 

Beschreibender  Katalog  einer  Sammlung  von  Spitzen  und  Kanten,  darstellend  den  geschichthchen 
Entwickelunsrsgang  der  gesammten  Spitzen-Industrie  vom  XVI.  bisxzum  XIX.  Jahrhundert.  31  pp.  8vo. 
Aachen,  n.d.  (Catalogue  of  Lace  purchased  by  the  New  Museum  at  Dresden). 

BONE  LACE  : 

Some  considerations,  humbly  offered  to  the  Honourable  House  of  Commons,  concerning  the  Proposed  Repeal 
of  an  Act  lately  passed  to  render  the  Laws  prohibiting  the  importation  of  Foreign  Bone  Lace,  etc.,  more 
effectual.  4pp.  small  folio. 

CLEROET(Ch.  Ernest): 

Tracings  by,  tilled  in  as  facsimiles,  of  the  following  lace  and  other  pattern  books  : 

La  fleur  de  la  Science  de  Pourtraicture,  et  patrons  de  Broderie,  etc.  Small  fol.  60  pp.  of  designs.  Paris, 
F.  Pelegrin,  1530. 

Splendora  del  virtuoso  giovane.    Sm.  obi.  4to.    42  pp.  of  designs.      Venise.      Francesco  Calepino,  1563. 

Triompho  di  Lavori,  etc.    Sm.  obi.  4to.    9  designs.    Padoue,  Fra  Hieronimo  da  Civiclad  da  Vridi.  1555. 

Patrons  pour  Brodeurs,  Lingeres,  Massons,  Verriers,  et  autres  gens  d'esprit.  Sm.  obi.  4to.  6  tracings. 
Paris,  Vve.  Jean  Rudle.  n.d. 

Patrons  de  divers  manieres,  etc.    Sm.  obi.  4to.    11  tracings.    Lyons,  Pierre  de  Ste.  Lucie,  1590. 

La  vera  perfezione  del  Designo,  etc.    Sm.  obi.  4to.    23  tracings.    Venice,  Francesco  Senese,  1591 

COCHER1S  (Hippolyte) : 

Recueil  de  documents  graphiques  pour  servir  &  1'Histoire  des  Arts  Industrials.  Patrons  de  Broderie  et  de 
Lingerie  du  XVIe  sifecle.  Reproduits  par  le  proc^d^  Lefman  et  Lourdel  et  public's  d'apres  les  Editions  conservees 
a  la  Bibliotheque  Mazarine.  Small  4to.  Paris,  1872.  2nd  edition.  Small  4to.  Paris,  1873. 

COLE  (Alan  Summerly) : 

Ancient  Needlepoint  and  Pillow  Lace.  With  notes  on  the  history  of  lace  making,  and  descriptions  of  30 
examples.  Under  the  Science  and  Art  Department  of  the  Committee  of  Council  on  Education.  20  photographs. 
Fol.  London,  1875. 

Lace.    Article  in  the  "  Magazine  of  Art,"  London,  1879.    pp.  249-251. 

Cantor  Lectures  on  the  art  of  Lace  Making,  delivered  before  the  Society  of  Arts,  April  and  May,  1881.  8vo. 
London,  1881. 

DUBLIN: 

Museum  of  Science  and  Art.    Catalogue  of  Lace  Collection  compiled  by  Alan  S.  Cole.    1878. 

FELKIN  (William): 

History  of  Machine-wrought  Hosiery  and  Lace  Manufactures.    Royal  8vo.    London,  1867. 

FERTIAULT  i  Frangois  de) : 

Histoire  de  la  Dentelle.    Par.  M.  de    .    .    .    woodcuts.    12mo.    Paris,  1843. 

FISCHER  (Hugo): 

Technologische  Studien  im  Sachsischen  Erzgebirge.  Mit  einem  vorwort  von  Dr.  E.  Hartig.  17  plates.  8vo 
Leipzig,  1878. 

FRANCO  (Qiacomo) : 

Nvova  Inventione  de  diuerse  mostre  cosi  di  punto  in  acre,  etc.  Sm.  obi.  4to.  6  pp.  of  designs  ana 
title.  Venice,  1596. 

Facsimile  reproduction  of  the  above  complete.  Sm.  obi.  4to.  24  pp.  lace  designs.  Venice,  1596.  Edited  by 
F.  Ongania,  Venice,  1876. 


100 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


NENIA. 


Words  by  E.  RANDEGGER. 


Music  by  G.  ALDO  RANDEGGER. 


Lento. 


So  -  pra    la       re  -  te          vo  -  la      la    mano          Vo  -  la     le      ma  -  glie   ad     al  -  lac  -  ciar,  Ed    il    pen 

I  I  ^n^M^M^^B  ^••^••^••H  ^  ^ 


Lento. 


-—jr    -*     , &^ — -J- 


* 9 • 9-  •  * 9 ***- 


\—^=f. 


rail. 


:rf=*=^1  r     i    *  •  r-frr 


rail. 

3     i    •    r1^ 


^    a  tempo. ' 

-K.»  _J —          — > ** 

=3=3[=3= 


-    sie  -  TO          vo  -  la    lon-tano,  vo  -  la    lon-tano,         lon-tano,  Ion    -   tan          su'l        mar!  E      cu-ciai 


^ 


2U 


s~*  ** 


-9*- 


7^1-^1 


rall. 


rail. 


m^t 


J»t*L 


col  canto. 


--& 


a: 


ai 


•=r       =T  -2=*- 


15 


/  ™//. 


o^r.  un  poco. 


,=^— -  ^ 


co  -  ra,    E    cu-ciancora!         e  -  gli  e   lag  -  giii,  e -gli  e  lag  -  giu  !  ti    par-lail  ma  -  re,     ti    par-lail 

I 

JU1T»Ur-r 


/3P, 


ma    -    re,       Loa-scol  -  ti        tu,  Lo  a  -  scol  -  ti        tu?          "Non      lo      ve   -  drai,  non     lo      ve  - 


Fed.- 


THE     LITERATURE     OF     LACE 


101 


rail. 


tempo. 


aj}r.  unpoco. 


-    -    drai,          Piu  mai,  piu  mai  ! 


Vien  so-pra    1'a  -  le         del  tern -po    -    ral,  Dal  lar-go    vien  vo-ce    fa  - 


YI//.  col  canto. 


:  tempo. 


I     rt^V.  *«  poco. 


I  I 


rail,  mo  I  to. 


a  tempo. 


rail. 


J3  a  tempo. 


-    tale,         II    ven-to  &     for  -  te,  Par-  la    di    mor  -  te  !  A     la     ri  -  den  -  te  spiag-gia  del  -  11  -   do  La  ve  -  la 


col  canto. 


. 
f 


a  tempo. 


rail. 


a  tempo. 


41 


\ J         -f 


g±23=*ir 


-* — 1»- 


espressione. 


bian  -  ca    non  vol  -  ge  -    ra  lor-na  a  cu   -  ci    -    re,     il    ma- re  e  in    -     fi  -  do  il  ma-re  e  in  -  fi  -  do  eil-ma  -  ri  - 


g£teEi=|=g=gE3=^  j         J.  j-^ 


col  canto. 


bJ.    *    -« 


^ 


rt^V.  unpoco.  con  espressione. 


- 


=F >- 


rail. 


iu  lento. 


tnolto  adagio. 


^     > 


nar   non  tor  -  ne     -      ra  E  il    ma  -  ri    -   na    -    ro    non  -tor  -  ne      -      r 


mai      piu. 


THE    LITERATURE     OF    LACE.  103 

FRENCH  (Gilbert  J.): 

The  Tippets  of  the  Canons  Ecclesiastical.    Illustrated  with  woodcuts.    8vo.    London,  1850. 

QOUBAUD  (Madame)  : 

Madame  Goubaud's  Book  of  Guipure  d'Art.    98  illustrations.    Sm.  4to.    London,  1869. 

Madame  Goubaud's  Pillow  Lace  Patterns,  and  instructions  in  Honiton  Lace-making,  Numerous  illustrations 
am.  4to.  London,  1871. 

HAILSTONE  (S.  H.  Lilla)  : 

Catalogue  of  a  Collection  of  Lace  and  Needlework,  with  a  list  of  books  on  the  same  subject  both  formed  by 
anil  in  the  possession  of,  Mrs.  Hailstone,  of  Horton  Hall.  Illustrated  by  photographs.  Sm  4to  London 
Privately  printed,  1868. 

Designs  for  Lacemaking.    40  coloured  plates.    4to.    London,  1870. 

HAWKINS  (Daisy  Waterhou.se)  : 

Old  Point  Lace,  and  how  to  copy  and  imitate  it.    17  illustrations  by  the  author.    8vo.    London,  1870. 

JESURUM  (Michel  Angelo)  : 

Cenni  Storici  e  Statistic!  still'  Industria  dei  Merletti.    8vo     Venice,  1873. 

LACE: 

Statistics  of  the  Bobbin  Net  Trade,  etc.    Fol.    Nottingham,  1833-36. 

Lacemaking  as  a  Fine  Art.    From  the  "  Edinburgh  Review,"  January,  1872.    8vo. 

The  Queen  Lace  Book  :  a  historical  and  descriptive  pamphlet  of  the  hand-made  antique  laces  of  all  countries 
Part  I.—  Mediaeval  Lacework  and  Point  Lace.  30  illustrations  of  lace  specimens,  and  7  diagrams  of  lace 
stitches.  4to.  London,  1874. 

Traits  de  la  Dentelle  Irlandaise  et  des  jours  il  1'  Aiguille  (Point  d'Alengon).  Ouvrage  illustr^  de  149  gravures 
Deuxieme  Edition,  revue  et  augmented.  Post  8vo.  Paris,  1876. 

LACE  MANUFACTURE: 

Fabrication  de  la  Dentelle  clans  le  De"partement  du  Rh&ne,  et  les  de"partements  limitrophes.  Industrie 
spe'ciale  de  la  Maison  Dognin  et  cie.  4to.  Lyon,  1862. 

LACE  PATTERNS  : 

Gioiello  corona  per  le  npbili,  e  virtvose  Donne,  libro  qvarto.  Nel  quale  si  dimostra  altri  nuoui  bellissimi 
dissegni  di  tutte  le  sorte  di  Mostre  di  Punti  in  Aria,  Punti  tagliati,  <fe  Punti  a  Reticello  ;  cosi  per  Freggi,  come 
per  Merli  <fc  Rosette,  che  con  1'Aco  si  vs  ano  hog  gi  di  per  tutta  Europa.  Et  molte  delle  quali  Mostre  possouo 
•  seruire  anchora  per  Opere  k  Mazzette.  Nuouamente  posto  in  luce  con  molte  bellissime  inuentioni  non  mai  pui 
vsate,  nfe  vedute.  Con  Privilegio.  In  Venetia,  Appresso  Cesare  Vecellio,  in  Frezzaria  nelle  Case  dei  Preti, 
1593.  (Facsimile  Eliotipica  della  stampa  originale  esistente  nella  R.  Biblioteca  Marciana  in  Venezia.)  Obi. 
4to.  Venezia,  1876. 

Corona  delle  nobile  et  virtvose.  2nd  edition  of  the  facsimile  edition  by  F.  Ongania.  Oblong  4to.  Venezia, 
1879. 

Serena  Opera  Nova  di  Recami,  nella  qvale  si  ritrova  varie  &  diuerse  sorte  di  punti  in  stuora,  &  punti  a  filo, 
&  medesimamente  di  punto  scritto  &  a  fogliami,  &  punto  in  stuora  a  scachetti,  &  alcuni  grpppi  incordonati, 
&  rosete,  done  ogni  virtuosa  giouene  potrk  facilissimamente  fare  ogni  sorte  di  bellisimo  lauoriero.  Opera  non 
men  vtile  che  necessaria.  Oblong  4to.  Venezia,  Domenico  de'  Franceschi,  1564.  27  patterns.  Facsimile, 
edited  by  F.  Ongania,  Venezia,  1879.  This  forms  Part  X.  of  the  "  Raccolta  di  Opera  antiche  su'i  disegni  dei 
Merletti  di  Venezia." 

LACE  AND  OTHER  PATTERNS: 

Verschiedene  Modell  zum  Stricken  und  Nahen,  verlegt  und  zu  finden  bey  Marx  Abraham  Rupprecht,  Johann 
Christoph.  Haffner,  seel.  Erben  Kunstverbeger,  in  Augsburg.  14  plates.  Sm.  obi.  fol.  Augsburg,  n.d. 

Venetian,  16th  century.  12  leaves  of  woodcut  designs  from  a  Venetian  lace  book  of  the  end  of  the  16th 
century.  Sm.  obi.  4to.  n.d. 

Sensuyuent  les  Patrons  de  Messire  Antoine  Belin,  Reclus  de  sainct  Marcial  de  Lyon.  Item  plusieurs  aultres 
patrons  normeaulx,  pui  ont  inuentez  par  frere  Jehan  Mayol,  Carrae  de  Lyon.  22  patterns  and  title  page.  4to. 

yon,  n.d. 

Wilhelm  Hoffmann's  Spitzen-Musterbuch.  Nach  der  im  Besitze  des  k.  k.  Oesterr.  Museums  beflndlichen 
original-aus  gabe  vom  Jahre  1607  herausgegeben  vom  k.  k.  Oesterreichischen  Museum  f  iir  Kunst  und  Industrie. 
Mit  cinem  borwort,  Titelblatt  und  Musterbliittern.  18  photo-lithogr.  plates,  and  frontispiece.  Obi.  fol. 
Wien,  1876. 

LACE  AND  CROCHET: 

French  Patterns  for  Crochet  and  Lace  Borders,  with  instruction,  for  workers.    4to.    n.p.,  n.d. 

LADY'S  ALBUM  OF  FANCY  WORK: 

4to.     London,  1850. 

LONDON  EXHIBITION,   1851  : 

Reports  of  the  Juries.    Class  XIX.,  pp.  460-476.    Tapestry,  lace,  embroidery,  etc.    8vo.    London,  1852. 

LONDON  EXHIBITION,   1862: 

Reports  of  the  Juries.    Class  XXIV.    Tapestry,  lace,  and  embroidery.    8vo.    London,  1863. 

MACRAME  LACE: 

A  knotted  Trimming,  etc.    By  the  Silkworm  (the  Silkworm  series).    8vo.    London,  n.d.  (1875). 

MERLI  (Antonio)  : 

Origine  ed  uso  delle  Trine  a  pilo  di  refe.    100  examples  on  6  lithograph  plates.    4to.    Geneva,  1864. 

Zierl'ich-webende  Minerva,  Oder  neu-erfundenes  Kunst-und  Bild-Buch  der  Weber-und  Zeichner-Arbeit,  etc. 
12  pp.  text  ;  49  pi.  ;  uncut,  sin.  4to,  mounted  in  folio.  Nurnberg  (Johann  Christ.  Weigel).  n.d. 


pa 
Ly 


104  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

MODELBUCH : 

New  Modelbuch  von  allerhandt  Art,  nehens  und  Stiekens,  etc.  153  woodcut  patterns.  Fcp.  4to.  Frankfurt 
a/m.  Niclas  Bassee.  1571. 

New  Model  Bitch.  Darinnen  allerley  Gattung  schbner  Modeln  der  Newen  aussgeschitnen  Arbeit  .  .  .  zu 
neyen,  etc.  (Woodcuts,  Venetian  designs,  reprint  of  the  third  book  of  Vecellio's  "Corona.")  Obi.  8vo. 
St.  Gallen,  1593.  See  Vecellio  (Cesare). 

New  Modelbueh  darinnen  allerley  aussgeschnittene  Arbeit  .  .  .  erst  newlich  erf unden.  Sm.  4to.  Woodcut 
patterns  for  lace.  Mumpelgarten  (Montoe'liard).  Jacob  Foillet,  1598. 

Facsimile  reproduction.  Gantz  new  Modelbuch  kiinstlicher  und  lustiger  Visirung  und  Muster,  etc.  Obi.  fol. 
18  pp.  of  lace  designs.  Frankfurt  a/m.,  1607.  Edit,  by  F.  Ongania.  Venice,  1878. 

NEH  UND  STRICKBUCH  (Neues) : 

Fur  das  scheme  Geschlecht,  etc.  27  plates  of  designs  for  Samplers  and  other  needlework.  Obi.  sin.  fol. 
Nurnberg  and  Leipzig,  1874. 

NOTTINGHAM: 

Patterns  of  Nottingham  Lace,  referred  to  in  the  report  of  the  Nottingham  School  of  Design,  March,  1850. 
73  patterns  in  a  folio  cover. 

Catalogue  of  Special  Loan  Exhibition  of  Lace  at  the  Midland  Counties  Fine  Art  Museum,  1878.  By  Alan  S. 
Cole. 

NUREMBERG  (German  Museum) : 

Katalog  der  im  germanischen  Museum  beflndlichen  Gewebe  und  Stickereien,  etc.    20  plates.    Imp  8vo.   Nurn- 
berg, 1869. 
ORNAMENTO  DELLE  BELLE  ET  VIRTUOSE  DONNE,  etc. : 

32  leaves,  with  woodcut  designs  on  both  sides.    Venetian,  16th  century.    Sm.  4to.,  n.p.,  n.d. 

OSTAUS  (Giovanni): 

La  Vera  Perfettione  del  disegnodi  varie  sorti  di  Recami,  et  di  cucire  de  punti  a  fogliami,  punti  tagliati,  punti  a 
flli  e  rimessi,  punti  in  cruciati,  etc.  Obi.  8vo.  Venetia,  1567. 

t'actimile  reproduction.  La  Vera  Perfettione  del  disegno  di  varie  sorti  di  Recami,  etc.  xxx..  in  Venetia 
appresso  Gio  Ostaus,  1567.  Obi.  4to.  5  pp.,  title,  etc.,  and  35  pp.  of  designs.  Edited  byF.  Ongania.  Venice,  1878. 

PAGANI  (Matio): 

L'honesto  Essempio  del  uertuoso  desiderio  .  .  .  circa  lo  imparare  i  punti  tagliati  a  fogliami.  Woodcut 
designs  for  lace.  32  pp.  Post  8vo.  Venice,  1550. 

PAGANINO   (Ales.sandro): 

Libro  primo.    De  rechaini  p  elquale  sfe  impara  in  diuersa  modi  lordine  e  il  inodo  de  recamare,  cosa  no  mai  piu 

fatta  ne  stata  mostrata,  el  qual  modo  sei  insegna  al  lettore  voltando  la  carta.  Opera  noua.  Facsimile  of  the 
original  edition  of  1527,  edited  by  F.  Ongania.  8vo.  Venezia,  1878.  This  forms  Part  IX.  of  "  Raccolta  di  Opere 
an tic-lu!  sui  disegni  dei  Merletti  di  Venezia." 

PALLISER  (Mrs.  F.  Bury): 

History  of  Lace.    8vo.    London,  1865.    2nd  edition,  8vo.,  London,  1869.    3rd  edition,  8vo,  London,  1875. 

Lace.    From  the  Quarterly  Review.    July,  1868. 

Notes  on  the  History  of  Lace,  to  which  is  added  a  catalogue  of  specimens  of  lace,  selected  from  the 
Museum  at  South  Kensington,  contributed  as  a  loan  to  the  Midland  Counties  Museum  of  Science  and  Art, 
Nottingham.  14  illustrations.  8vo.  London,  1872. 

PARIS    EXHIBITION   (1867): 

Report  by  M.  F.  Aubry.     (Jury  Reports,  IV.,  p.  223.)    See  also  Aubry  (F.) 
Report  by  Mrs.  Palliser.     Vol.  3.,  p.  109.    See  also  Palliser  (Mrs.  F.  B.) 

RECHAMI   (De): 

Per  elquale  se  impara  in  diversi  modi,  1'ordine  el  il  modo  de  recamare,  etc.  Libro.  Secondo.  ..terzo.  ..quarto. 
(Reprint.)  Plates  of  embroidery  patterns.  8vo.  n.p.,  n.d. 

RIEGO    DE    LA    BRANCHARDIERE  (Mile.): 

The  Netting  Book  for  Guipure  d'Art,  etc.    Obi.  16mo.    London,  1868. 

ROMANA   (Lucretia): 

Facsimile  Reprint.  Ornamento,  Nobile,  per  ogni  gentil  Matrona,  etc.  Folio.  14  pp.  lace  designs.  Venice,  1620. 
Edit,  by  F.  Ongania,  Venice,  1876. 

SAINTE-CROIX  (Dr.   Le  Roy  de): 

Parement  d'Autel  ancien  en  Dentelle  et  Broderie,  appartenant  k  Mrs.  Hailstone.    8vo.    Wakefield  and  Paris, 

1874. 

SCOTT  (E.): 

Flowers  in  Point  Lace.    Obi.  4to.    London,  n.d.  (1873). 

SEQUIN   (Joseph): 

La  Dentelle ;  histoire,  description,  fabrication,  bibliographic,  orn«5e  de  cinquante  Planches  phototypo- 
graphiques  facsimile  de  Dentelles  de  toutes  les  e"poques.  Passements  aux  Fuseaux-Points  coupe's  k  rAiguille- 
Points  de  Venise,  de  Genes,  de  France,  Guipures,  Valenciennes,  Malines,  Points  d'Alengon,  de  Sedan,  de 
Bruxelles,  d'Angleterre,  Blondes,  Chantilly,  etc.,  et  de  nombreuses  Gravures  d'apres  les  meilleurs  Maitres  des 
XVIe  et  XVIIe  Siecles.  Fol.  Paris,  1875. 

SIBMACHER  or  SIEBMACHER  (Hans  and  Johann) : 

H.  Sibraacher's  Stick  undhpitzen-Musterbuch.  Nach  der  Ausgabe  vom  Jabre,  1597.  (Schon  Neues  Modelbuch 
von  allerley  lustigne  Modeln  naczunehen  Ziiwurcken  vfi  Zustiehe)  in  facsimilirten  Copien  heraus  gegeben  voin 
k.  k.  Oesterreichischen  Museum.  35  plates.  Obi.  8vo.  Wien,  1866. 

Neu  Modelbuch.    With  58  plates.    Obi.  8vo.    Nurnberg,  1604. 

J.  Sibmacher's  Neues  Stick  und  Spitzen-Musterbuch  in  60  Blattern.  Nach  der  Ausgabe  vom  Jahre  1604 
herausgegeben  von  Dr.  J.  G.  Georgens.  Obi.  8vo.  Berlin,  1874.  (Reprint.) 

Facsimile  reproduction.    Stick-und  Spitzen  Musterbuch  (Reprod.  of  ed.  1597).    35  plates.    Obi.  8vo.    Wien,  1866. 

Thirty-seven  plates  from  Hans  Sibmacher's  "  Newes  Modelbuch."    Obi.  8vo.    Nurnberg,  1604. 

Twenty  plates  from  Hans  Sibmacher's  "Schon  Neues  Modelbuch  von  allerley  lustigen  Modeln  natzunehen 
zu  wurcken  vn  zu  sticke."  Obi.  8vo.  Nurnberg,  1597. 

Nineteen  plates  from  Hans  Sibmacher's  "  Modelbuch."    Obi.  8vo.    Nurnberg,  1601. 


THE    LITERATURE     OF    LACE.  105 


STASSOF   (W.): 

L'Ornement  National  Busse.  Ime.  Livraison,  Broderies,  Tissus,  Dentelles.  Coloured  illustrations.  Text  in 
Russian  and  French.  Fol.  St.  Petersburg,  1872. 

TOUCHE  (V.): 

The  Handbook  of  Point  Lace.    4th  ed.    Pub.  by  Wm.  Barnard.    Obi.  4to.    London,  1871. 

TREADWIN  (Mrs.): 

Antique  Point  and  Honiton  Lace.  Containing  plain  and  explicit  instructions  for  making,  transferring,  and 
cleaning  laces  of  every  description.  With  about  100  illustrations,  outlines,  and  pickings  of  the  principal  Antique 
point  stitches  and  Honiton  sprigs.  Sm.  4to.  London,  n.d. 

URBAN  I    (G.   M.,   de  Qheltof): 

I  Merletti  a  Venezia.    Sm.  4to.    Venezia,  1876. 

VAVASSORE  (Q!o.  Andrea): 

Opera  Nova  Universal  intitulata  corona  di  racammi,  etc.      Woodcut  designs  for  lace,  16th  cent.     36  pp.    Sm. 
4to.    Venice,  n.d. 
Facsimile  reprint  of  the  above.    Sin.  4to.    Edit,  by  F.  Ongania.    Venice,  1878. 

VECELLIO  (Cesare): 

Corona  delle  Nobili  et  Virtuose  Donne.  22  pp.  of  lace  designs  from  the  1st  and  2nd  books  of  the  original 
edition.  Obi.  8vo.  Venice,  1600. 

Corona  delle  Nobili  et  Virtuose  Donne.  Libro  terzo.  Obi.  8vo.  (Reprint  of  Venetian  16th  century  patterns 
for  lace.)  27  pp.  Venice,  1620. 

Facsimile  reprint.  Gioiella  della  Corona  per  le  nobile,  e  Virtuose  Donne.  Libro  quarto.  30  pp.  of  lace 
designs.  Venice,  1593.  Edit,  by  F.  Ongania.  Venice,  1876. 

Facsimile  reprint.  Corona  delle  nobili  et  Virtuose  Donne,  etc.  3  books,  78  pp.  of  lace  designs.  Obi.  4to. 
Venice,  1600.  Edit,  by  F.  Ongania.  Venice,  1876. 

V1NCIOLO  (Federico  di): 

Les  singuliers  et  nouveaux  pourtraicts pour  touttes  sortes  d'ouvrages  de  Lingerie,  etc.     4to. 

Paris,  1587.    Other  editions  Paris,  1595,  and  Basle,  1599. 


A  DICTIONARY  OF  LACE. 


Alencon  Point. 

This,  the  most  elaborate  needle-point  lace  which  has  ever  been  produced  in 
France,  was  first  made  in  about  1 66^  Royal  edicts,  forbidding  the  wearing  of 
Spanish  and  Italian  lacesj-having'lSeen  ineffectual  in  inducing  the  nobles  of  Louis 
XIV. 's  extravagant  court  to  wear  the  inferior  laces 
produced  by  France,  the  king's  ministers  determined 
to  improve  the TFrench  laces,  and  thus  keep  in  the 
country  the  enormous  sums  spent  on  Italian  and 
Flemish  ruffles. 

The  Venetian  instructors  who  were  appointed 
found  intelligent  pupils  in  the  French  lace-makers, 
who  had  been  accustomed  to  make  twisted  and 
plaited  thread  laces;  and  to  imitate  the  old  Point 
Coupe  of  Italy,  and  when  their  prejudice  was  over- 
come, they  became  expert  makers  of  the  new  fabric. 
It  was  difficult,  however,  to  teach  the  lace-makers 
of  Alen9on  to  exactly  imitate  the  Venetian  stitches  ; 
although  until  1678  Alen9on  point  strongly  resembled 
Spanish  and  Venetian  points,  and  is  called  Point  de 
France,  the  designs  and  stitches  being  the  same,  and 
the  ground  in  each  case  consisting  of  brides  or 
connecting  bars,  either  plain  or  ornamented  :  after 
that  date  a  change  is  apparent  in  the  lace  made  at 
Alen9on,  and  it  acquires  characteristics  of  its  own, 
and  has  its  distinctive  title. 

Point  d'Alen9on  was  called  a  "winter"  lace, 
on  account  of  its  being  of  a  thick  and  firm  make. 
This  firmness  is  due  to  the  cordonnet,  and  to  this  we 
owe  the  excellent  preservation  in  which  the  lace  is 
usually  found,  being  far  superior  in  this  particular  to 
Brussels  point.  The  cordonnet  in  Alen9on  lace 
made  in  France  is  padded  with  horsehair  ;  occa- 
sionally specimens  are  found  which  have  had  the 
padding  withdrawn,  doubtless  because  of  its  tendency 
to  shrink  and  draw  up  when  washed.  In  Alen9on 
lace,  or  Argentella,  as  it  is  called  when  made  in  Italy, 
the  cordonnet  is  flat. 


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HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


It  was  during  the  reigns  of  Louis  XIV.  and  Louis  XV.  that  Alen9on  was  at 
the  height  of  its  glory.  The  most  extravagant  prices  were  paid  for  the  lace  ;  not 
only  were  articles  of  clothing  trimmed  with  it,  but  the  beautiful  fabric  was  used 
as  bed  furniture,  valances,  trimmings  for  bath  covers,  and  bed  spreads.  Altars  in 
the  churches  were  hung  with  it,  surplices  of  the  priests  trimmed  with  it,  and  the 
king  gave  away  to  his  court  favourites  cravats,  ruffles,  and  complete  robes.  Before 
the  Revolution  in  1794,  and  before  the  revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes,  when 
France  lost  many  of  her  most  skilled  workers,  the  annual  value  of  the  manufacture 
was  estimated  to  be  12,000,000  livres.  Work-people  earned  at  this  time  3  sous  and 
upwards  per  day. 

During  the  Revolution  the  Alen9on  lace  factory  became  almost  extinct,  and 
many  of  the  workers  were  killed  on  account  of  their  connection  with  the  hated 
aristocracy,  as  caterers  to  the  luxury  of  the  age.  Others  fled  from  the  country, 


Alenijon  Point  Lace  ;   eighteenth  century.      Each  mesh  of  the  reseau  or  net  ground  is  made 

with  the  needle-point. 

so  that  it  was  with  difficulty  that  sufficient  workers  could  be  found  to  carry  out  the 
lavish  orders  of  Napoleon  I.,  for  the  emperor  saw  prosperity  to  France  in  the 
revival  of  the  lace  industry.  One  of  his  gifts  to  Marie  Louise  was  bed  furniture 
of  rich  lace  ;  tester,  coverlet,  pillow  cases  and  edgings  for  sheets  were  all  made 
of  the  finest  Alencons,  the  Royal  arms  on  elaborate  escutcheons  being  worked  on 
a  ground  of  Vrai  or  needle-point  reseau,  powdered  over  with  bees,  the  Napoleonic 
cypher. 

The  Alenson  lace  factory  fell  with  the  empire.  Many  of  the  old  workers  died, 
and  no  young  ones  were  trained  to  take  their  places.  The  Duchesse  d'Angouleme 
tried  to  revive  the  industry,  but  her  own  handsome  orders  and  those  of  her 
personal  friends  alone  could  not  coax  it  back  to  prosperity.  In  1830  there  were 
only  two  or  three  hundred  lace-workers  employed. 


Lappet  of  Needle-point  Lace  (Point  d'Alencon),  4i  inches  wide.     This  specimen 
is  especially  rich  in  elaborate  fillings.      Eighteenth  century. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


log 


Ten  years  later  the  old  women  were  gathered  together  and  another  effort 
was  made.  At  the  Exhibition  of  1851  a  few  specimens  were  shown,  and  in 
1856  large  orders  were  given  for  the  layette  of  the  Prince  Imperial.  The  coverlet 
of  his  little  bed  was  of  Alen9on  lace.  The  christening  robe,  mantle  and  head  dress, 
and  the  three  baskets  were  all  trimmed  with  the  beautiful  point.  Twelve  dozen 


embroidered  frocks  were  profusely  trimmed  with  the  lace,  as  were  also  the  nurses' 
aprons. 

In  1859  the  most  costly  work  ever  executed  at  Alenson  was  exhibited.  This 
was  a  dress  valued  at  200,000  francs,  which  was  purchased  by  the  Emperor 
Napoleon  III.  for  the  Empress. 

It  is  helpful  in  judging  Alencon  point  to  know  something  of  the  dates  of  certain 
patterns,  none  of  which  are  as  fine  as  those  used  for  Argentan  point. 


no 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Like  the  designs  of  laces  made  at  other  factories,  Aler^on  patterns  will  be 
found  to  correspond  with  the  style  of  decoration  in  the  houses  and  furniture  of  each 
successive  period.  For  some  time  after  the  death  of  Colbert,  the  designs  were 
chiefly  flowing  and  undulating,  showing  that  Venetian  influence  was  not  yet  entirely 
shaken  off.  It  is  at  this  period  that  small  figures  and  heads  are  sometimes  intro- 
duced into  the  pattern.  The  eighteenth  century  patterns  show  garlands,  while 
escutcheons  or  lozenges  of  finer  ground  appear  just  as  the  painted  medallions  of 
Boucher  were  inserted  in  the  panels  of  the  salons  of  the  time. 

Then,  when  in  iurniture  the  ornate  legs  of  tables  and  chairs  gave  place  to 
stiffer  and  more  upright  designs,  the  lace  patterns  became  more  rigid  and  angular. 
In  Louis  XVI. 's  reign  the  reseau  or  ground  was  sewn  over  with  spots,  tears, 
sprigs  or  insects,  and  a  narrow  pattern  used  as  border.  The  semes  or  powderings 
continued  during  the  Empire  period,  and  they  are  still  occasionally  used  in  con- 
junction with  designs  from  real  flowers  now  in  vogue.  At  present  the  finest  modern 
Alencon  Point  is  made  at  Bayeux,  and  at  the  Royal  lace  factory  at  Burano,  near 
Venice.  It  was  of  Alencon  lace  that  the  beautiful  wedding  veil  of  Princess  Helene 
of  France,  who  in  1895  married  the  Due  d'Aosta,  was  made.  On  the  groundwork, 
which  was  the  Vrai  reseau  or  net  made  with  the  needle-point,  was  a  floral  design. 
Medallions  in  the  centre  enclosed  the  armorial  bearings  of  the  bridegroom 
surmounted  by  the  Cross  of  Savoy,  the  Fleur  de  Lys,  and  the  arms  of  France. 
This  veil  was  of  an  unusually  large  size,  being  no  less  than  fourteen  feet  long. 

Modern  Alencon  lace  ranks  as  fifth  in  value  compared  with  other  laces.  It 
was  so  placed  by  the  Commissioners  at  the  Great  Exhibition  in  1851,  Brussels, 
Mechlin,  Valenciennes,  and  Lille  taking  rank  above  it. 

Aloe  Lace. 

The  peasants  of  Albissola,  in  Italy,  have  from  remote  times  been  accustomed 
to  make  a  coarse  kind  of  lace  from  the  fibres  of  the  aloe.  Tatting  is  done  in 
aloe  thread  at  Manilla,  in  the  Philippine 
Islands.  The  lace  work  so  produced  is  not 
much  in  demand,  as  it  becomes  mucilaginous 
in  washing.  Although  it  is  usually  executed 
in  tatting,  the  threads  are  sometimes  twisted 
and  plaited.  Such  work  is  also  done  by  the 
natives  of  Paraguay,  South  America. 
Alost  Lace. 

A  bobbin-made  lace  of  the  Valenciennes 
type,  under  which  heading  it  is  described. 
Antwerp  Lace. 

A  bobbin  lace  resembling  Mechlin,  but 
with  bolder  design.  The  industry  was 
founded  at  Antwerp  in  the  seventeenth 
century,  and  the  work  executed  there  is 
sometimes  known  as  Flanders  lace.  It 
was  made  in  order  to  supply  the  increased 
demand  for  Mechlin  lace.  Antwerp  lace  was  of  two  kinds : 


Aloe  Lace  work,  7J  inches  wide,  made  by  the 
natives  of  Paraguay,  South  America  ; 
nineteenth  century  ;  known  as  ' '  Toile 
d'Araigner." 


one  with  a  design 


A     DICTIONARY     OF    LACE. 


in 


worked  upon  a  ground,  the  other  with  the  sections  of  the  design  merely  attached 
to  each  other  by  means  of  brides  or  bars.  The  plait  thread  characteristic  of 
Mechlin  pillow  lace  was  used  to  outline  the  design,  which  gives  it  an  effect  like  em- 
broidery. Lille  lace  is  now 
made  in  the  neighbourhood,  > 
though  some  of  the  peasants  ^~ 
still  work  at  the  old  pot  ,§ 
pattern,  which  is  a  relic  of 
the  elaborate  design  repre- 
senting  the  Annunciation — 
the  Angel,  the  Virgin  Mary, 
and  the  lilies  are  shown  in 
seventeenth  century  speci- 
mens, but  all  these  items 
have  gradually  been  omitted 
until  the  pot  which  held  the 
lilies  alone  remains.  Much 
of  this  lace  was  at  one  time 
exported  to  Spain,  but  now 
little  of  the  Potten  Kant 
leaves  the  country.  Brussels 
lace  is  also  made  at 
Antwerp. 

Applique  Laces. 

Many  kinds  of  laces  in 
different  parts  of  the  world, 
such  as  Brussels  and 
Honiton,  in  Devonshire,  are 
made  by  applying  the  bobbin 
or  needle-point  sprigs  to  a 
machine-made  net  ground  ; 
or  by  applying  lawn  on  net, 
muslin,  or  cambric.  Such 
work  was  a  most  popular 
pastime  during  the  last 
century,  and  the  home 
needlework  thus  produced 
was  largely  used,  where  the 
more  expensive  laces  would 
have  taken  its  place  had  not 
the  heavy  duties  rendered 
their  wear  impossible  for  the 
masses.  The  embroidery 
was  worked  partly  to  imitate 
lace,  and  partly  to  imitate 
the  popular  Indian  muslin 


Needle-point  Lace  (Point  d'Argentan),  6|  inches  wide;  the  latter  end  of  Louis  XIV. 's  reign 

(early  eighteenth  century). 


A     DICTIONARY     OF    LACE. 


-  <        |      . 

ct-'fD 

- 


-0-5 


8  =5 


embroidery.     (Descriptions  of  the  different  kinds  of  applique  laces  are  given  under 
their  various  headings.) 

Argentan  Lace. 

The  needle-point  lace  made  at  Argentan  is  the  only  needle-point  lace  with 
a  net  ground  besides  Alencon  which  has  ever  been  made  in  France.  It  is  probable 
that  factories  at  both  places  were  established 
in  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.  by  Colbert,  but 
its  name  does  not  appear  in  the  ordinance. 

Like  that  made  at  Alencon,  the  Argentan 
lace  was  at  first  called  Point  de  France, 
and  though  lace-makers  near  Ligneres-la- 
Doucelle  and  in  other  villages  worked  for 
both  establishments,  there  are  many  distinct 
characteristics  in  the  two  fabrics.  The 
Argentan  excelled  in  the  brides,  or  bars.  A 
speciality  of  Argentan  is  the  bride  picotee,  a 
remnant  probably  of  the  Venetian  teaching, 
for  Italian  workers  were  brought  over  to 
show  the  French  lace-women  the  art  of 
needle-point  lace-making.  This  fact  accounts 
for  the  Venetian  character  of  the  early 
designs  and  stitches.  The  bride  picotee 
consists  of  a  six-sided  button-hole  bar, 
fringed  with  a  little  row  of  three  or  four 
pearls  on  each  side.  This  bar  is  also  called 
bride  epingle'e,  because  pins  were  pricked  on 
the  pattern  to  show  where  the  loops  or 
boucles  were  to  be  made — hence  another 
name,  bride  bouclee.  The  art  of  making  the 
bride  bouclee  was  for  a  long  time  lost.  An 
effort  was  made  about  1830  to  revive  it,  and 
an  old  worker  was  found  who  had  made  it 
in  her  girlhood.  A  distinctive  feature  in 
Argentsn  point  is  that  the  pattern  is 
always  larger  and  bolder  than  that  worked 
in  Point  d'Alen9on.  The  toile  is  flatter  and 
more  compact.  The  workmanship  of 
Alencon  is  more  minute  and  less  effective, 
the  reseau  ground  is  finer.  It  is  well  to 
know  the  points  of  difference,  as  the  two 
fabrics  are  often  confounded.  Both  flou- 
rished during  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV. 

In  1708  the  manufacture  of  Argentan 
had  fallen  into  decay,  when  Sieur  Guyard, 
a  merchant  of  Paris,  applied  to  the  Council 
of  the  King  for  permission  to  re-establish  the 


p.* 

11 

CD    l-l 


n4  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

manufacture,  and  to  employ  six  hundred  workwomen.  He  desired  to  place  the 
Royal  Arms  over  his  door,  and  asked  that  his  engraver  and  draughtsman, 
Montulay,  should  be  exempt  from  all  taxes  except  capitation.  His  request  was 
granted.  Guyard's  descendants  continued  the  work,  but  the  famous  draughtsman, 
Montulay,  went  over  to  a  rival  firm,  with  whom  there  was  much  quarrelling, 
both  on  this  account  and  also  because  of  the  impartiality  of  the  Dauphin, 
the  King,  Richelieu,  and  foreign  royalties,  in  placing  their  orders  with  either 
firm.  The  number  of  lace-makers  in  Argentan  and  its  environs  at  that  time 
amounted  to  1,200.  Many  names  of  gentlewomen  of  noble  houses  appear  on  the 
lists  of  the  workers,  indicating  that  the  making  of  point  lace  was  carried  on  by 
both  rich  and  poor. 

It  was  during  the  reigns  of  Louis  XV.  and  Louis  XVI.  that  Point  d' Argentan 
was  at  its  best.  It  became  almost  extinct  at  the  time  of  the  Revolution,  through 
dispersion  of  the  workers  and  failure  in  demand  for  the  fabric.  Since  that  time 
little  attempt  has  been  made  to  revive  it.  Embroidery  is  now  made  by  the  town 
workers,  and  the  hand-spinning  of  hemp  by  the  cottagers  of  the  once-famous 
lace-making  district  now  takes  the  place  of  the  old  industry. 

Argentella  Point. 

This  needle-point  lace  was  made  in  Italy,  chiefly  at  Burano,  some  time  after 
the  early  Venetian  raised  and  flat  points  had  begun  to  wane  in  popularity,  and  was 
the  result  of  an  effort  on  the  part  of  the  Italians  to  conform  to  the  fashion  for  light 
fine  lace,  when  the  taste  for  the  heavy  raised  points  had  declined.  It  resembles 
Argentan  and  Alen9on  lace,  but  has  no  raised  outline  cord  like  that  seen  in  the 
French  fabrics,  the  lines  of  button-hole  stitch  which  surround  the  fillings  being  as 
flat  as  the  stitches  themselves.  The  designs  are  chiefly  powderings  or  semes,  of 
circles,  ovals,  or  small  sprays  upon  a  net-patterned  ground.  By  some,  this  Burano 
Point  is  considered  superior  to  Brussels  lace,  as  the  designs  are  more  delicate  and 
the  thread  is  whiter. 

Arras  Lace. 

The  bobbin  lace  made  at  Arras,  in  France,  is  identical  with  that  produced  at 
Lille,  but  inferior  in  quality.  Until  the  treaties  of  Aix  la  Chapelle  in  1668,  and 
Nimeguen  in  1678,  both  these  lace-making  centres  belonged  to  the  Netherlands,  so 
that  it  is  not  surprising  that  the  character  of  the  laces  resembles  that  produced  in 
other  parts  of  Flanders. 

It  is  believed  that  the  Emperor  Charles  V.  first  introduced  the  manufacture  oi 
lace  into  Arras.  Primarily  it  was  of  the  coarse  thread  variety,  which  was  much 
used  in  England.  Later,  finer  threads  were  introduced.  Between  1804  and  1812 
the  lace  trade  of  Arras  was  in  a  most  flourishing  condition,  but  since  that  time  the 
industry  has  declined,  and  in  1851  there  were  only  8,000  lace-workers  within  a 
radius  of  eight  miles  round  the  city,  while  their  earnings  did  not  exceed  65  centimes 
a  day. 

The  lace  of  Arras  is  perfectly  white,  firm  to  the  touch,  and  very  strong  ; 
mignonette  is  the  name  of  the  favourite  design.  Very  little  variety  is  found  in  the 
patterns,  and  for  this  reason  it  is  less  in  demand  than  the  lace  made  at  Lille,  which 
it  much  resembles  ;  as  a  rule  the  edges  are  straight  and  the  patterns  stiff.  The 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE.  115 

lace-makers  achieve  their  work  with  extraordinary  rapidity  through  long  working 
at  the  same  pattern.  The  number  employed  in  the  industry,  which  in  the  last 
century  reached  30,000,  is  now  reduced  to  a  few  hundreds. 

Many  years  ago  gold  lace  was  also  made  at  Arras ;  in  the  account  of  the 
coronation  of  George  I.,  a  charge  for  354  yards  of  Arras  lace  appears  amongst  the 
expenses. 

Asbestos  Lace. 

The  non-combustible  mineral  asbestos  has  been  woven  into  a  lace-like  fabric. 
This  curiosity  was  at  one  time  kept  in  the  Cabinet  of  Natural  History  at  the  Jardin 
des  Plantes,  in  Paris. 

A  solution  of  asbestos  is  sometimes  used  for  rendering  lace  non-inflammable. 
Lace  draperies  and  flounces  used  on  the  stage  near  naked  lights  are  frequently 
steeped  in  such  a  solution. 

Austrian  Bobbin  Lace. 

There  is  a  comparatively  modern  variety  made  in  Austria,  in  Bohemia.  It 
resembles  old  Italian  bobbin  lace;  the  school  where  it  is  made  is  under  government 


Austro-Hungarian  Bobbin  Lace,  6J  inches  wide  ;  nineteenth  century. 

patronage.     The  industry  was  commenced  as  a  means  of  relieving  the  distress  in 
the  Tyrol  in  1850,  and  continues  to  flourish. 

At  Laybach,  in  Austria,  there  was  at  one  time  a  bobbin  lace  factory  which 
produced  lace  much  esteemed  in  the  eighteenth  century  ;  this  factory  no  longer 
exists.  Point  Gaze  and  a  few  less  important  laces  are  made  in  Bohemia  still,  but 
little  of  artistic  merit.  Hungarian  lace  is  made  at  the  present  day,  some  of  it  being 
of  good  and  artistic  design. 

Auvergne  Laces. 

The  origin  of  the  making  of  lace  in  the  province  of  Auvergne  is  assigned  to 
the  fourteenth  century,  and  nearly  all  the  point  lace  of  Aurillac  passed  through  for 

I  2 


n6  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

exportation  to  Spain.  At  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century  the  products  of  Aurillac 
and  other  fine  laces  of  Auvergne,  sold  on  the  Place  at  Marseilles,  were  valued  at 
350,000  livres  per  annum.  It  seems  that  the  Point  d'Aurillac  of  that  period  was  a 
gold  and  silver  lace.  The  fabrication  ended  with  the  demand  for  less  costly 
ornaments  at  the  time  of  the  Revolution. 

The  laces  of  Murat  (Upper  Auvergne)  were  points  much  valued  on  account  of 
their  beauty,  and  were  chiefly  made  at  La  Chaise  Dieu,  Alenches,  and  Versailles. 
At  Tulle  a  speciality  was  made  in  galloons,  which  were  tied  together  with  a  net 
similar  to  the  twisted  ground  of  Torchon  lace.  These  galloons  were  called 
entoilages,  and  were  used  as  insertions  with  the  finest  laces.  The  industry  died  with 
the  French  Revolution. 

At  Le  Puy  the  lace  industry  still  flourishes,  and  an  account  of  it  will  be  found 
under  that  heading. 

Ave  Maria  Lace. 

Bobbin  lace  of  a  simple  Valenciennes  variety.  The  ground  is  plaited.  It  is 
chiefly  made  at  Dieppe  by  the  peasants,  who  have  given  it  its  special  name. 

Bath  Brussels  Lace. 

A  broad  lace  made  at  Honiton,  under  which  heading  it  is  further  mentioned. 

Bayeux  Lace. 

In  the  department  of  Calvados,  Bayeux  and  Caen  are  celebrated  as  centres  of 
the  lace-making  industry.  Before  1745,  the  lace-workers  made  a  white  thread  lace 
of  Venetian  design,  the  needle-point  flowers  being  surrounded  by  a  thick  heavy 
cordonnet.  Light  thread  laces  were  occasionally  made. 

In  1740  a  merchant,  M.  Clement,  opened  an  establishment  in  Bayeux, 
and  from  that  time  the  lace-making  trade  there  has  flourished  exceedingly,  until 
at  the  present  time  it  is  one  of  the  first  in  France.  The  lace  of  Bayeux  closely 
resembles  that  of  Chantilly  and  is  frequently  sold  as  such.  Many  of  the  so-called 
Chantilly  lace  shawls  in  the  Exhibition  of  1862  were  made  at  Bayeux  ;  the  designs 
are  the  same  ;  the  mode  of  working  is  identical ;  the  most  experienced  lace  judges 
are  sometimes  unable  to  detect  the  difference.  Silk  laces  were  first  made  at  Bayeux, 
Caen  and  Chantilly  in  1745;  the  silk  was  of  ecru  colour,  brought  from  Nankin  ; 
white  silk  from  Cevennes  was  afterwards  used.  One  thickness  of  silk  is  used  for  the 
ground  and  another  for  the  pattern  ;  the  manufacture  of  hand-made  white  blonde 
lace  has  languished  since  the  invention  of  machines  for  lace-making  at  Nottingham 
and  Calais.  When  large  pieces  of  lace,  such  as  veils,  scarves,  and  deep  flounces 
for  skirts  are  made,  the  beautiful  raccroc  stitch  is  used  and  the  pieces  are  joined 
imperceptibly,  so  that  a  shawl  which  would  at  one  time  have  taken  two  women  a 
year  to  make,  can  now  be  completed  by  fifteen  women  in  six  weeks.  Alen9on  lace 
is  now  made  at  Bayeux.  (Further  information  will  be  found  under  Black  Silk 
Lace  and  Chantilly.) 

Bedfordshire  Lace. 

This  is  a  bobbin  variety  differing  but  little  from  Lille  lace.  Its  manufacture 
flourished  during  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries.  Queen  Catherine  of 
Aragon  introduced  the  making  of  lace  into  the  county  during  her  two  years' 


A     DICTIONARY     OF    LACE. 


117 


residence  at   her  jointure    manor   of  Ampthill,  and  encouraged  by  example  and 
subsidies  the  industry  of  the  workers. 

Much  Bedfordshire  pillow  lace  is  still  disposed  of  by  itinerant  lace-sellers. 
Baby  lace  was  made  m  Bedfordshire  when  babies'  tiny  frilled  caps  were  worn, 
quantities  being  used  for  sewing  to  the  edges  of  cambric  frills.  This  is  sometimes 
called  English  Lille,  on  account  of  the  resemblance  to  the  Lille  patterns  and  to 
those  of  Mechlin.  The  industry  in  this 
county,  however,  as  in  Devonshire,  is,  unfor- 
tunately, dying  out,  especially  with  regard  to 
the  working  of  the  finer  patterns.  The  work  is 
carried  out  chiefly  in  the  cottages,  and  geo- 
metric or  Maltese  designs  are  worked,  frequently 
in  cotton  thread  or  flax  with  cotton  admixture. 
Beggars'  Lace. 

A    term    of  contempt   once   given  to   the 

narrow  braid  laces  of  gueuse,  bisette,  compane 

and    mignonette    patterns.     In    the    reign    of 

Louis   XIV.,   many  edicts  were  published   to 

prevent  the  courtiers  from   squandering   their 

wealth  on  foreign  laces,  and  to  encourage  the 

home  manufactures  by  compelling   the  nobles 

to  wear  the  coarse  kind  of  Torchon  made  in 

France  at  the  time  ;  but  the  fastidious  French- 
men would  have  none  of  the  "  Beggars'  Lace," 

which  was   never   worn   except    by  the   lower 

classes  who  could  only  afford  a  cheap  and  easily 

executed  lace.    Cheap  laces  are  no  longer  called 

Beggars'  Lace. 

Belgian  Laces. 

The  only  original  lace  of  Belgium  is  the  old  Flanders  Point.  All  other  kinds 
are  reproductions  of  the  laces  of  the  other  countries  of  Europe.  The  Italian 
laces  are  made,  the  application,  and  fine  French  and  English  varieties.  During 
the  Austrian  occupation  of  Italy,  when  the  lace  industry  declined  considerably 
in  the  Peninsula,  the  trade  in  Belgium  was  extremely  prosperous.  Again  when 
Point  d'Angleterre  was  required  for  England  and  Fiance,  in  the  seventeenth  and 
eighteenth  centuries,  Belgium  supplied  large  quantities.  The  imitative  faculty 
is  extraordinary.  "Made  in  Belgium"  is  to  the  lace  trade  what  "Made  in 
Germany  "  is  to  the  trade  of  the  nineteenth  century  in  fancy  goods ;  that  is  to  say, 
whenever  a  new  type  or  pattern  in  hand-made  lace  appears  in  Italy,  France,  or 
elsewhere,  that  same  lace,  at  a  rather  cheaper  price,  will  a  month  afterwards 
appear  from  Belgium. 

Flanders  has  disputed  with  Italy  the  honour  of  introducing  to  the  world  so 
lovely  a  fabric  as  lace,  but  we  think  there  are  conclusive  proofs  ot  the  priority  of 

\T  • 

Venice  in    making  needle-point  lace,   as  we  have  briefly  shown  in   our  opening 
chapters.      As  to  bobbin  lace,  the  arguments  used  in  favour  of  the  invention  in 


Bobbin  "Baby  Laces,"  1|  inches  wide, 
made  in  Bedfordshire  "and  adjacent 
counties  ;  nineteenth  century. 


n8 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Flanders  are  based  upon  a  picture  in  a  side  chapel  in  the  Church  of  St.  Peter's,  at 
Louvain.  Quentin  Matsys  has  depicted  a  girl  working  at  a  pillow.  This  picture 
was  painted  in  1495,  and  the  occupation  was  evidently  chosen  as  one  common  in 
the  country  at  the  time.  But  on  close  examination  it  will  be  found  that  it  is 
embroidery  and  not  lace  which  is  being  made. 

Every  northern  country  in  modern  Europe  learnt  the  art  of  bobbin  lace-making 
from  the  Netherlands,  chiefly  through  the  refugees  who  brought  their  knowledge 
of  the  handicraft  with  them  when  they  fled  from  the  horrors  of  the  religious 
persecutions  of  the  sixteenth  century. 

So  keenly  alive  were  the  Belgians  to  the  profit  accruing  from  the  national 
handicraft  of  lace-making,  that  in  1698  an  Act  was  passed  in  Brussels  making  it  a 
criminal  offence  to 
suborn  the  workpeople, 
as  so  many  of  the  most 
skilful  were  emigra- 
ting, led  away  by  the 
high  wages  offered  in 
France  and  other  coun- 
tries. Well  organised 
ecoles  dentellieres,  or 
lace  schools,  still  exist 
in  Belgium,  and  chil- 
dren's education  in 
lace-making  com- 
mences at  five  years 
of  age.  This  being  so, 
it  is  little  wonder  that 
lace  is  a  source  of 
national  wealth. 
Large  quantities  are 
made  in  the  ateliers 
and  lace  schools  in  the 
towns,  some  also  by 
the  villagers  in  their 
own  homes  throughout  Belgian  Tape  Lace,  lOi  inches  wide  ;  seventeenth  century.  The  r£seau 
the  country.  ~or  ground  is  needle-P°int- 

As  early  as  the  sixteenth  century,  the  Emperor  Charles  V.  ordered  that 
lace-making  should  be  taught  in  the  schools  and  convents,  and  we  have  seen  an 
interesting  proof  in  the  Musee  Cluny  in  Paris  that  he  patronised  the  lace-makers 
in  a  practical  manner  by  wearing  cut-work  and  embroidery.  The  form  it  takes  is 
that  of  a  cap  worn  by  the  Emperor  underneath  his  crown.  It  is  made  of  evenly 
woven  linen  and  designs  of  very  fine  lacis  or  cut-work  alternating  with  the  imperial 
arms  embroidered  in  relief. 

Large  quantities  of  black  lace  are  manufactured  in  Belgium  at  the  present  day, 
this  industry  especially  flourishing  in  and  around  Grammont.  The  lace-making 
industry  of  Mechlin  has  declined  considerably  on  account  of  this  lace  being  an 


ira^c^MTt".     .>A  x«^W%         3«,i*C^\ 


fe^«  ^•^^p'swt^S  .  MSw^ 


Lappet  of  eighteenth-century  Belgian  Bobbin   Lace,  4*  inches  wide.      The  gimp  or  toile' 
of  the  close   parts  of  the  design   is  as  fine  as  cambric ;  the  cordonnet  is  raised. 


A     DICTIONARY     OF    LACE.  n9 

easy  one  to  imitate  by  machinery.     Louvain  and  Antwerp  were  the  towns  which 
once  gave  their  names  to  laces  made  in  the  neighbourhood. 

Special    descriptions    of    Belgian    laces    will   be    found   under    the   headings 
Antwerp,  Binche,  Brussels,  Flanders,  Mechlin,  Trolle  Kant,  Valenciennes,  etc. 
Binche  Lace. 

Binche  Lace,  or  Guipure  de  Binche,  made  at  a  town  in  Hainault.  The  variety 
now  executed  is  of  the  Brussels  bobbin  make.  Flat  sprigs  wrought  with  the 
bobbins  are  afterwards  appliqued  on  to  machine-made  net.  The  making  of  lace  at 
this  town  began  early  in  the  seventeenth  century,  and  the  fabric  produced  was  at 
one  time  a  rival  to  the  now  more  famous  Brussels  ;  it  was  then,  and  until  the  end 
of  the  eighteenth  century,  called  Guipure  de  Binche.  The  plait  ground  was  never 
made :  spider  and  rosette  grounds  were  used  together  with  the  mesh  patterns.  It 
resembled  old  Valenciennes  more  than  any  other  kind  of  lace.  This  is  accounted 
for  by  the  fact  that  Valenciennes,  when  lace  was  first  made  there,  formed  part  of 
the  ancient  province  of  Hainault,  and  was  only  transferred  to  France  by  treaty 
and  conquest  at  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century.  It  is  almost  impossible  to 
distinguish  Binche  Lace  from  that  made  at  the  French  centre. 

Bisette  Lace. 

A  bobbin  lace  made  during  the  seventeenth  century  in  the  villages  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Paris.  It  was  coarse  and  narrow  as  a  rule,  though  there  were 
three  grades,  of  varying  widths  and  quality.  The  peasant  women  who  made  it  used 
it  principally  for  ornamenting  their  own  caps.  Gold  and  silver  thread  laces  were 
also  called  Bisette.  These  were  sometimes  further  ornamented  with  thin  plates  of 
the  metal. 

Black  Silk  Laces. 

It  would  be  extremely  difficult  to  determine  when  the  black  silk  lace  industry 
was  commenced.  In  the  reign  of  Louis  XV.  in  France  the  fabric  was  worn  ;  as 
early  as  the  occasion  of  the  marriage  of  Louis  XIV.  with  the  Infanta  Marie 
Therese  it  is  mentioned.  At  this  time  it  was  used  over  coloured  brocade,  and  also 
as  a  trimming  for  the  decolletage.  Black  silk  guipure  has  never  been  very 
popular,  though  at  the  time  when  in  the  early  Victorian  Era  Indian  shawls  were 
much  worn  in  winter,  black  silk  lace  shawls  replaced  the  warm  material  in  summer, 
and  the  arrangement  of  the  folds  was  considered  a  severe  test  of  elegance.  The 
shawl  was  worn  folded,  the  two  points  nearly  reaching  the  edge  of  the  skirt  at  the 
back,  and  the  front  being  fastened  across  with  a  shawl  brooch  or  ornamental  pin 
specially  made  for  the  purpose. 

Black  silk  lace  is  now  made  at  Bayeux,  at  Chantilly,  in  Malta,  and  in 
Catalonia.  Embroidered  net  lace  work  is  extensively  made  in  the  prisons  in  Italy, 
machine-made  black  net  being  darned  with  silk  in  bold  effective  patterns.  A  coarse 
loosely-woven  silk  thread  is  used  for  the  purpose. 

Blandford  Lace. 

Defoe  wrote  of  Blandford  in  Dorsetshire  :  "  This  city  is  chiefly  famous  for 
making  the  finest  bone  lace  in  England  ;  they  showed  us  some,  so  exquisitely  fine, 
as  I  think  I  never  saw  better  in  Flanders,  France,  or  Italy;  and  which,  they  said, 
they  rated  above  ^"30  sterling  a  yard."  This  was  in  1731.  Soon  after  the  whole 


I2O 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


town,  with  the  exception  of  twenty-six  houses,  was  consumed  by  fire,  and  the 
lace  trade  greatly  declined,  being  replaced  by  that  of  button  making,'  in  which  it 
is  now  chiefly  engaged. 


Black  Lace  of  Caen  and  Bayeux  (much  reduced)  ;  nineteenth  century. 

Blonde  de  Caen. 

A  silk  bobbin-made  lace.  It  was  about  1745  that  the  blonde  laces,  which 
have  rendered  Caen  famous,  first  appeared  ;  both  black  and  white  flax  thread 
laces  had  formerly  been  made  in  the  neighbourhood. 

At  first  the  blondes  were  of  a  creamy  colour,  hence  the  name  nankins  or 
blondes,  the  silk  being  imported  from  Nankin.  Later  improvements  in  the 
preparation  of  the  silk  made  white  blondes  possible,  and  their  lightness  and 
brilliancy  account  for  their  popularity. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


121 


When,  early  in  the  nineteenth  century,  the  thread  lace-makers  were  reduced 
to  ruin  by  the  introduction  of  machine-made  net,  the  silk  blonde  workers  enjoyed 
increased    prosperity.      It    was    about 
1840    that    the    lace-makers    of    Caen 
began   the  manufacture  of  black   silk 

laces  of  the  same  pattern  as  the  white  ^ 

and  cream  laces  ;  so  delicate  are  the  g 

tints  of  these  latter  that  it  is  said  that  S* 

the  women  work  in  the  open  air  during  & 

the  summer  to  preserve  the  purity  of  1 

colour,  and  in  winter  they   sit   in   the  | 

lofts  over  the  cow  houses.     These  lofts  » 

being    warmed   by    the    breath   of  the  ~ 

animals,  no   fire   is   required    with  its  W 
inevitable  smoke. 

MJ 

The  old  blonde  laces  had  a  ground  * 

of  coarse   mesh  ;    the    later   ones    are  g 

finer,  the  designs  in  better  proportion.  |- 

It  was   at   Chantilly  that  the    double  g 

ground  or  Paris  point  was  first  used.  ^ 

It  is  strange  that  none  of  the  authors  g- 

of  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  cen-  8- 

turies  mention   the  town  of  Chantilly,  g. 
which  was  the  most  important  blonde 

lace-making  centre  outside  Paris.  V 

Blonde  de  Fil.  g 

This  is  described  under  Mignonette       f 
Lace.  1 

Oi 

CD 

Blonde  Net  Lace.  "«, 

O 

Bobbin  lace  with  a   fine  network  £ 

ground   and    heavy    pattern.      Blonde  •§, 

lace  has  a  silk  reseau  resembling  that  ^ 

for  which  the  thread  laces  of  Lille  are  § 

celebrated,  and  the  toile  is  worked  with  ~ 

a    broad,    flat    strand,   which    glistens  § 

effectively  ;   to  this  brightness  blonde  ® 

laces  owe  their  popularity,  for  there  is  t? 

usually    little    artistic    merit    in    their  g 

design.     Such  laces  are  made  at  Caen,  g 
Chantilly,    Barcelona,    and    Catalonia, 
and  they  are  more  fully  described  under 
Blonde  de  Caen  and  Chantilly. 

Bobbin  Lace. 

The  correct  name  for  lace  made  on  a  stuffed  cushion  by  twisting  and  plaiting 
threads  wound  on  bobbins.    By  this  term  the  fabric  was  known  during  the  seventeenth 


122 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


and  eighteenth  centuries  to  distinguish  it  from  other  hand-made  laces  which,  though 
frequently  supported  on  a  pillow,  were  executed  without  bobbins.  During  the 
early  part  of  the  nineteenth  century,  when  there  was  little  accurate  knowledge  of 
lace,  the  custom  of  calling  bobbin  lace  "  pillow  lace  "  grew,  but  none  who  have  seen 
the  workers  of  lace  in  the  great  modern  schools  of  Europe  and  know  that  needle- 
point and  knotted  laces,  as  well  as  bobbin  lace,  are  supported  in  the  hands  of  the 
worker  on  a  pillow,  can  accept  the  term  pillow  lace  as  a  distinctive  title  for  one  kind 
only.  The  French  dentelle  au  fuseau  alludes  to  the  bobbins,  the  Italian  term 
a  Piombini  signifies  iron-weighted  bobbins,  and  Merletti  a  Ftiselli  bobbin  lace, 


Cuff.— Band  of  Linen  embroidered  in  Satin  Stitch  and  edged  with  a  broad  and  with  a  narrow  length  of 
silk  Bobbin-made  Lace  with  a  wavy  tape-like  pattern.     Probably  Maltese  ;   seventeenth  century. 

correctly  so  called  by  Lady  Layard  in  her  "  Technical  History  of  Italian  Lace." 
It  is  time  that  England  returned  to  her  old  accuracy  in  describing  this  kind  of 
lace. 

The  fact  that  lace  has  been  made  upon  the  pillow  with  bobbins  can  usually 
be  detected  by  the  plaiting  and  twisting  of  the  threads.  The  forerunners  of  the 
bobbins  used  by  pillow  lace  makers  were  little  implements  which  are  to  be  seen 
in  a  picture  in  a  Harleian  MS.  of  the  time  of  Henry  VI.  and  Edward  IV.,  in 
which  directions  are  given  for  the  making  of  "  Lace  Bascon,  Lace  Indented, 
Lace  Bordered,  and  Open  Lace,  &c."  The  MS.  describes  how  threads  in 
combinations  of  twos,  threes,  fours,  fives,  tens,  and  fifteens  are  to  be  twisted  and 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


123 


plaited  together  ;  instead  of  the  pillow  bobbins  and  pins  with  which  pillow  lace  is 
now  made,  the  hands  were  used,  each  finger  serving  as  a  peg.  Occasionally  the 
hands  of  three  or  four  assistants  were  required  to  "  furnish  sufficient  pegs  for  a  broad 
border."  In  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century,  the  best  period  for  bobbin  as 
for  all  other  laces,  it  was  made  as  follows,  and  the  methods  have  changed  but 
little  : — A  pattern  was  first  drawn  upon  a  piece  of  paper  or  parchment,  then  pricked 
with  holes.  Great  skill  was  required  for  this  process,  as  a  pricker  must  determine 
where  the  principal  pins  should  be  stuck  for  guiding  the  threads.  The  pricked 
pattern  was  then  placed  upon  the  cushion.  (This  "  pillow"  varies  in  shape  and  size 
in  different  countries,  or  with  the  taste  of  the  individual  worker,  some  using  a 
circular  pad  backed  with  a  flat  board,  in  order  that  it  may  be  placed  upon  a  table 
and  easily  moved  as  the  worker  may  wish,  while  others  use  a  well-stuffed  bolster, 


Bobbin  Lace,  2i  inches  wide,  made  in  Mechlin,  Belgium  ;   late  eighteenth  century.     The 
sprigs  are  made  separately  from  the  reseau,  into  which  they  are  afterwards  worked. 

short  and  flattened  at  both  ends.)  On  the  upper  part  of  the  pattern  were  fastened 
the  ends  of  the  threads  unwound  from  the  bobbins,  which  thus  hung  across  the 
pillow.  These  bobbins  were  thrown  and  twisted  with  regulated  precision,  in  order 
to  form  the  fabric  of  the  ground  and  pattern. 

Bobbin  lace  is  constantly  made  according  to  the  patterns  of  needle-point  laces; 
in  the  seventeenth  century  especially,  the  points  of  Venice  were  extensively 
reproduced.  The  bobbin  lace  of  Buckinghamshire  has  been  celebrated  in  England 
ever  since  the  eighteenth  century.  The  most  used  "  edging  "  bore  the  name  of 
"  trolly,"  fronx  "  Trolle  Kant,"  or  sampler  lace,  sent  round  by  the  bobbin  lace- 
makers  of  Mechlin,  to  show  the  special  variety  of  patterns  upon  which  the  workers 
were  engaged  at  the  time.  Mechlin  has  always  had  a  very  high  reputation  for 


I24 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE     LACE. 


good  bobbin  lace,  since  the  days  when  lace-making  patterns  and  peculiarities 
came  to  be  identified  with  certain  localities.  In  the  seventeenth  century  Mechlin 
was  called  the  "Queen  of  Lace."  The  chief  characteristics  of  the  lace  made  in 
this  town  (which  are  explained  more  fully  under  Mechlin  Lace)  are  the  plaiting 
of  the  meshes  and  the  outlining  of  the  patterns  with  a  thread.  In  Brussels 
bobbin  lace  the  meshes  of  the  groundwork  are  hexagonal,  four  of  the  sides  being 
of  double  twisted  threads,  and  two  of  four  threads  plaited  four  times.  This  fact 


Italian  Bobbin-made  Tape  Lace,  4J  inches  wide ;  seventeenth  century.     This  specimen 

was  purchased  in  Milan. 

is  an  infallible  guide  in  the  judging  of  Brussels  bobbin  lace.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  Mechlin  mesh,  though  hexagonal  in  shape,  has  four  sides  of  double  twisted 
threads  and  two  sides  of  four  threads  plaited  three  times. 

The  soft  quality  of  fine  bobbin -made  lace  is  a  guide  in  distinguishing 
between  bobbin-made  and  needle-point  lace,  the  latter  having  a  much  harder 
and  crisper  appearance,  however  fine  the  threads  with  which  it  is  worked.  In 
Brussels  bobbin  lace  a  bone  instrument  was  used  to  give  concave  shapes  to 


A     DICTIONARY     OF    LACE. 


I25 


certain  parts  of  the  design,  such  as  petals  and  leaves,  which  were  much 
improved  by  the  realistic  effect  thus  obtained.  The  edges  of  such  flowers 
were  sometimes  emphasized  by  a  slighly  raised  plaited  work,  which  gave  the 
effect  of  a  cordonnet. 

The    first    mention    of    a    bobbin    lace    is    in    the    year    1596,  in  the  Nuova 
Inventione,    published    by     Giacomo 
Franco,  which    gives  two    patterns 
of    lace     made     with    bobbins     for         o 
household  linen. 

CO 

Both   Vinciolo    and     Parrasoli, 
in  the  early  part  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  give   examples   of  Merletti 
a    Piombini    (lead      bobbin      laces).          *, 
(Full  descriptions  of  special  bobbin         §' 
laces   will    be    found    under    their 
several  headings.)  g 


Bone  Lace. 

The  name  first  given  to  bobbin- 
made  laces  on  account  of  the  bones 
of  fishes  and  splinters  of  the  bones 
of  animals  being  used  instead  of 
pins,  and  the  bobbins  being  fre- 
quently of  carved  bone. 

Bone  point  is  sometimes  spoken 
of;  this  signifies  the  finest  quality 
of  bobbin  lace,  for  though  it  might 
be  expected  that  point  should  mean 
needle-point,  it  does  not  always  do 
so — the  word  point  being  used  by 
lace  experts  to  describe  a  fine 
quality  of  lace,  whether  of  needle- 
point or  bobbin  lace. 

Brazil  Lace. 


§T 


A  bobbin  lace  of  coarse  texture 
and  feeble  design,  used  only  amongst 
the  natives.  It  resembles  the  bobbin 
laces  of  Europe  in  a  slight  degree, 
the  patterns  being  in  the  style  of  the 
Valenciennes  and  Torchons,  but  is 
far  inferior  in  wear,  as  Brazilian 
lace  is  made  with  cotton  thread. 

Maceio,  in  the  province  of  Alagoas,  was  the  chief  centre  of  the  lace  trade  in  the 
middle  of  the  nineteenth  century. 


126 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE     LACE. 


Bridal  Lace. 

This  is  frequently  mentioned  in 
records  of  Elizabethan  times,  and  seems 
to  have  been  made  of  blue  thread,  being 
worn  by  the  guests  at  a  wedding  rather 
than  by  the  bride  herself.  Bridal  lace 
was  made  at  Coventry  until  the  Puritans 
discountenanced  the  wearing  of  such 
gauds. 

Broderie  de  Malines. 

The  name  sometimes  given  to  old 
Mechlin  Lace,  under  which  heading  it 
is  described. 

Broderie  de  Nancy. 

One  of  the  names  given  to  Drawn- 
work,  to  which  heading  the  reader  is 
referred. 

Bruges  Laces. 

Guipure     de     Bruges,      or      Point 

Duchesse,  is  a  bobbin  lace  of  fine  quality  ; 

the  sprigs  resemble  those  of  Honiton  lace, 

and  are  united  by  brides  or  bars  ornees. 

A  large  quantity  of  Valenciennes  lace 

is  also  made  at  Bruges,  but  the  quality 

is  not  as  good  as  that  produced  elsewhere,  for  in  forming  the  ground,  the  bobbins 

are  only  twisted  twice,  while 
those,  for  example,  at  Ypres  and 
Alost  are  twisted  four  and  five 
times.  The  oftener  the  bobbins 
are  twisted  the  clearer  the  effect 
of  the  mesh  ground. 

Bruges  pillow  lace  has  the 
reputation  of  washing  thick. 

The  lace-making  at  Bruges 
is  now  mostly  in  the  hands  of 
religious  communities.  Duchesse 
is  the  most  popular  type.  The 
Guipure  of  Honiton  resembles  it 
and  the  Venetian  Mosaic,  but  the 
English  lace  is  not  worked  with 
such  fine  thread,  nor  are  the 
Devonshire  leaves  and  sprays  of 
such  good  and  bold  design,  weak 

TT*'  design  being  the  chief  defect  of 

Duchesse  Spray  of  Bobbin  Lace,  such  as  is  made  at  Bruges        .  ..          TT       -^        i 

at  the  present  day.  the  modern  Honiton  lace. 


Bobbin-made  Cotton  Lace  from  Maceio,  in  the 
province  of  Alagoas,  Brazil ;   made  in  1850. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


127 


The  lace  resembling  Duchesse  made  in  Venice  in  the  present  day  is  called 
Mosaic  lace,  on  account  of  small  sprigs  being  used  to  build  up  the  pattern  as  the 
pieces  of  stone  and  glass  are  used  in  Mosaic  work. 

Brussels  Lace. 

The     needle-point     lace     of 
Brussels    is    known   as    Point    a 
1'Aiguille  and  Point  Gaze.     The 
bobbin  lace  is  sometimes  named 
Point    Plat    or   Flat    Point— the 
word   point  in  this  case  signifies 
the  fine  quality  of  the  lace,  and 
has  nothing  to  do  with  the  needle 
point.     Point  Plat  Applique  is  the 
name  given    to  Belgian  bobbin  - 
made    sprigs     which     are    after- 
wards  applied  to  machine-made 
net.      The  term    Point  d'Angle- 
terre,    as    applied   to   a   Belgian 
lace,  recalls  an  interesting  page 
in  the  history   of   Brussels  lace. 
In   1662,  the  English  parliament 
was  so  alarmed  at  the  effect  on 
English  trade  of  the  large  quantity 
of  lace  imported  into    England, 
that  English  laces  were  protected 
by  Act  of  Parliament,  and  a  law 
was  passed  forbidding  the  impor- 
tation   of    foreign    laces.       The 
English     lace     merchants    were 
determined  not  to  be  deprived  of 
their    lucrative    trade,    however, 
for  large  quantities  of  lace  were 
required  in  order  to  supply  the 
extravagant  court  of  Charles  II., 
so    it  came    about  that    Belgian 
lace  was  first  called  Point  d' Angle- 
terre,  for  under  no   other   name 
would  its  sale  in  England  be  legal. 
The  merchants  combined,  bought 
up    all    the    finest    lace    in    the 
Brussels  market,  and,  smuggling 
it  over  to  England,  sold  it  under 
the  name  of  English  point ;   and 
so  the  mistaken  idea  arose  that 
all  Point  d'Angleterre  was  made 


128 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


in  Belgium,  and  that  it  originated  in  that  country :  the  chief  portion  of  the  finest 
Point  d'Angleterre  was  made  in  England. 

The  thread  used  in  making  Brussels  lace  is  of  exquisite  fineness  ;  the  flax  for 
its  manufacture  is  grown  in  Brabant  ;  it  is  cultivated  for  lace-making  at  St. 
Nicholas,  Tournay,  and  Courtrai.  The  steeping  or  rouissage  is  done  in  the  Lys, 
the  river  close  to  Courtrai,  which  gives  better  results  than  any  other  water. 

Every  aid  which  can  be  devised  is  rendered  to  the  spinner.  A  background  of 
dark  paper  is  placed  where  it  will  best  show  up  the  thread  as  it  is  drawn  from  the 
distaff,  and  the  room  is  so  arranged  that  a  single  ray  of  light  is  thrown  upon  the 


Specimen  of  Brussels  Lace  which  once  belonged  to  Queen  Charlotte. 

work.  Even  with  this  assistance  the  spinners  rely  upon  the  "feel"  of  the  thread 
as  it  passes  through  their  fingers,  rather  than  upon  the  sight  of  what  is  so  fine  as  to 
almost  escape  their  eyes. 

The  wages  of  a  clever  Brussels  thread-spinner  are  extremely  high,  which  seems 
just,  when  we  know  that  from  one  pound  of  flax  lace  can  be  manufactured  to  the 
value  of  ^"700  ;  the  hand-spun  thread,  however,  costs  as  much  as  ^240  per  pound. 
It  is  now  little  used.  Thread  spun  by  machine  in  England  from  Belgian  flax 
is  much  used  in  Belgium  ;  this  is  occasionally  depreciated  in  value  by  cotton 
admixture,  and  the  fineness  has  never  equalled  that  made  by  hand. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE.  129 

The  earliest  Point  a  1'Aiguille  patterns  resembled  those  of  ancient  Point  de 
Venise.  Lace  appears  to  have  been  first  made  in  Brussels  in  the  fifteenth  century, 
and  a  few  rare  specimens  are  still  preserved  in  the  old  churches  of  Brabant.  The 
designs  were  taken  from  the  early  Genoese  Guipures  in  Gothic  style.  The  designs 
of  Brussels  laces  have  always  followed  the  fashions,  which,  indeed,  affected  lace  in 
every  part  of  Europe.  The  most  ancient  style  was  Gothic  or  Geometric.  Then 
came  the  stately  and  flowing  Renaissance  lines  which  were  used  until  the  simplicity 
in  all  fabrics  at  the  time  of  the  Revolution  demanded  less  ornate  designs.  The  first 
Empire  fashion  demanded  semes  or  powderings  of  spots,  insects,  or  tears,  together 
with  small  floral  borders  and  wreaths.  Since  1830  the  patterns  have  become  more 
floral,  the  flowers  themselves  following  the  lines  of  nature  closely  and  being  less 
conventional.  Many  sprays  display  flowers  made  of  needle  and  bobbin  lace 
mingled  together.  These  are  frequently  mounted  on  machine-made  net. 

The  Brussels  flowers  are  of  two  kinds,  needle-point  and  those  made  with 
bobbins  ;  both  these  are  made  separately  from  the  grounds.  In  old  Brussels  lace 
the  ground  was  worked  with  bobbins  round  the  flowers.  Later  the  flowers  were 
sewn  into  the  ground.  This  method  obtains  in  the  present  day.  Sometimes  the 
flowers  are  sewn  on  to  the  ground.  The  modes  connecting  Brussels  lace  designs 
are  most  elaborate,  as  are  the  fillings  or  intricate  stitches.  Relief  is  given  to  the 
outlines  of  the  flowers  and  fibres  of  leaves  by  a  raised  plaited  cordonnet  in  the 
bobbin  laces  ;  in  the  needle-point  lace  the  cordonnet  is  not  covered  with  button- 
holing. 

The  present-day  method  is  to  make  the  lace  in  separate  pieces  ;  one  worker 
makes  the  flowers,  another  "  hearts  "  them,  that  is,  adds  the  intricate  centres  and 
the  open  work,  or  jours.  This  method,  though  it  ensures  perfection  in  the  working 
of  each  separate  stitch,  does  not  encourage  individual  artistic  effort,  for  it  is  the 
master  alone  who  selects  the  ground,  chooses  the  thread,  and  knows  the  effect  the 
whole  will  produce.  He  it  is  who  chooses  the  design,  pricks  it  into  the  parchment, 
and  cuts  this  up  into  pieces,  handing  each  piece  ready  pricked  with  a  section  of  the 
pattern  to  the  special  worker  whose  business  it  is  to  put  in  the  stitches  of  which 
she  is  the  best  exponent.  Sometimes,  however,  in  the  smaller  lace  factories,  single 
workers  undertake  the  whole  process. 

Machine-made  net  has  been  used  for  the  application  of  Brussels  flowers 
land  sprigs  since  the  invention  of  machinery  for  making  net;  but  no  ground  yet 
(invented  is  superior  to  the  needle  ground.  This  is  worked  in  strips  not  more  than 
an  inch  wide,  which  are  joined  to  the  required  size  by  a  stitch  known  to  the  lace- 
|makers  of  Brussels,  Alen9on,  and  Venice  only.  This  is  the  assemblage,  or  point  de 
raccroc,  or  fine  joining  which  cannot  be  distinguished  from  the  net  itself. 

The  vrai  reseau  is  now  seldom  made ;  it  is  stronger,  but  three  times  more 
expensive  than  the  bobbin  ground.  It  differs  from  the  Alencon  ground  in  being  a 
(simple  looped  stitch  instead  of  being  whipped  a  second  time  as  in  the  French 
/ariety. 

In  the  bobbin-made  Brussels  ground,  two  sides  of  each  hexagonal  mesh  are 
formed  by  four  threads  plaited,  and  the  other  four  sides  by  threads  twisted  together. 

A   magnificent  collection  of  the  needle-point  ground  lace   was  presented 
Josephine  on  her  first  public  entry  into  Brussels  with  Napoleon. 


13° 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


The  Brabancon  or  Brussels  lace  has  one  great  defect — that  of  discolouration. 
In  order  to  conceal  the  brownish  tint  of  the  needle-point  sprays  as  they  come  from 
the  hands  of  the  workers,  the  workwomen  place  the  flowers  in  white  lead  powder, 
and  beat  them  with  their  hand  to  whiten  the  flax.  This  operation  is  extremely 
dangerous  to  the  worker,  who  frequently  contracts  lead  poisoning  from  inhaling  the 
injurious  powder,  and  also  makes  the  lace  turn  black  when  exposed  to  sea  air  or  to 
heated  rooms.  This  black  tone  can  never  be  removed. 

Lime  is  occasionally  used  to  whiten  discoloured  lace,  but  this  means  absolute 
destruction  of  the  fabric  by  burning  when  water  is  applied. 

Buckinghamshire  Lace. 

The  bobbin  lace  of  Buckinghamshire  is  celebrated  for  its  fine,  clear  grounds, 
which  rival  those  of  Lille,  the  twisted  plaits  used  for  such  grounds  being  generally 
of  the  same  model,  though  occasionally  made  according  to  the  Valenciennes 


Border  of  Bobbin-made  Buckinghamshire  Trolly  Lace,  2J  inches  wide ;  late  eighteenth  century. 

method.      All  Buckinghamshire  lace  is  worked  in  one  piece  on  the  pillow,  reseau 
and  toile  being  formed  by  means  of  the  bobbin. 

Queen  Catherine  of  Aragon  did  much  in  introducing  and  encouraging  the  lace- 
making  industry  in  Buckinghamshire,  as  she  did  that  of  the  neighbouring  counties  of 
Bedfordshire  and  Northamptonshire.  It  flourished  exceedingly,  until  in  1623  a 
petition  was  addressed  to  the  High  Sheriff  of  Buckinghamshire  from  Great  Marlow, 
showing  the  distress  of  the  cottagers  from  "the  bone  lace-making  being  much 
decayed."  In  1626  Sir  Henry  Borlase  founded  and  endowed  the  Free  School  of 
Great  Marlow,  for  twenty-four  boys  to  read,  write,  and  cast  accounts,  and  for 
twenty-four  girls  "to  knit,  spin,  and  make  bone  lace,"  and,  in  consequence,  the 
trade  of  that  place  flourished  again,  even  French  authors  speaking  of  the  town 
with  its  "manufactures  de  dentelles  au  ftiseau"  which,  however,  they  say  are  "inferieutt 
a  cells  de  Flandres." 

In  the  seventeenth  century  lace-making  flourished  in  Buckinghamshire.    Later, 
a  petition  from  the  poet  Cowper  to  Lord  Dartmouth  in  favour  of  the  lace-makers 


A     DICTIONARY     OF    LACE. 


declared  that  «  hundreds  in  this  little  town  (Olney)  are  upon,  the  point  of  starving, 
and  that  the  most  unremitting"  industry  is  barely  sufficient  to  keep  them  from  it." 
Probably  some  change  in  fashion  had  caused  this  distress. 

There  were  lace  schools  at  Hanslope,  and  children  taught  there  could  maintain 
themselves,  without  further  assistance,  at  eleven  or  twelve  years  of  age.  It  is 
interesting  to  note  that  boys  were  taught  the  handicraft  as  well  as  the  girls,  and 
many  men  when  grown 
up  followed  no  other 
employment,  which 
seemstousan  economic 
mistake,  as  there  are 
so  many  trades  suitable 
for  men,  so  few  for 
women  as  home 
workers.  The  lace 
made  at  Hanslope  in 
the  eighteenth  century 
was  valued  at  from  six- 
pence to  two  guineas  a 
yard,  and  the  lace  trade 
was  most  important, 
800  out  of  a  population 
of  1275  being  engaged 
in  it. 

Newport  Pagnell, 
from  its  central 
position,  was  of  great 
commercial  import- 
ance with  regard  to  the 
bone  lace  manufacture. 
In  the  Magna  Britannia, 
1720,  it  is  spoken  of  as 
"a  sort  of  staple  for  bone 


Bobbin-Made  Buckinghamshire  Laces  ;  nineteenth  century. 


lace,  of  which  more  is 
thought  to  be  made  here 
than  in  any  town  in 
England.  That  commodity  is  brought  to  as  great  perfection  almost  as  in  Flanders." 
In  1752  the  first  prize,  for  the  maker  of  the  best  piece  of  bone  lace  in  England, 
was  awarded  to  Mr.  William  Harriot,  of  Newport  Pagnell,  Bucks.  In  1761,  we 
are  told  by  Mrs.  Bury  Palliser,  Earl  Temple,  Lord  Lieutenant  of  Buckingham- 
shire, presented,  on  behalf  of  the  lace-makers,  a  pair  of  lace  ruffles  to  the  King. 
His  Majesty  asked  many  questions  respecting  this  branch  of  the  trade,  and  was 
graciously  pleased  to  say  that  the  inclination  of  his  own  heart  naturally  led  him  to 
set  a  high  value  on  every  endeavour  to  improve  English  manufactures,  and 
whatever  had  such  recommendation  would  be  preferred  by  him  to  works  of  possibly 
higher  perfection  made  in  any  other  country. 


K    2 


132 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE     LACE. 


The  manufacture  of  lace  in  Buckinghamshire  and  Bedfordshire  was  consider- 
ably improved  by  the  influx  of  French  emigrants  who  took  refuge  in  England  at 
the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century.  In  the  neighbourhoods  of  Burnham  and 
Desborough  especially  the  trade  was  much  extended. 

In  Sheahan's  "  History  of  Bucks,"  published  in  1862,  the  following  places  are 
mentioned  as  being  engaged  in  the  trade: — Bierton  (where  both  black  and  white 
lace  was  made),  Cuddington,  Haddenham,  Great  Hampden,  Wendover,  Gawcott 
(where  black  lace  was  chiefly  produced),  Beachampton,  Marsh  Gibbon,  Claydon, 
Oving  (celebrated  for  its  black  and  white  laces),  Bletchley,  Lavendon,  Great 
Sandford,  Loughton,  Milton  Keynes,  Moulsoe,  Newton  Blossomville,  Olney, 
Winslow,  and  other  villages. 

The   narrow  edgings   so    much    used    when   tiny  frilled   caps  were  worn   by 

babies,  were  made  in 
Buckinghamshire,  and 
known  in  the  trade  as 
Baby  lace.  The  dis- 
continuance of  this 
fashion,  together  with 
the  introduction  of 
machine-made  lace, 
has  caused  the  making 
of  Buckinghamshire 
lace  to  decline  con- 
siderably. The  in- 
dustry has,  however, 
revived  to  a  small 
extent  within  the  last 
few  years,  and  some 
fine  specimens  were 
shown  at  the  Health 
Exhibition, in  London, 

in  1884.  The  name  trolly  is  used  in  connection  with  the  thick  thread,  or  cordonnet, 
with  which  the  outline  of  the  pattern  is  accentuated — this  is  known  as  "  a  trolly  "  by 
the  workers.  Large  quantities  of  lace  for  the  Queen's  trousseau  were  made  in 
Buckinghamshire,  shawls,  sunshades,  and  trimming  for  underlinen  having  been 
executed  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Paulerspury  and  elsewhere.  It  was  in  this 
district  also,  we  are  informed  by  Miss  Burrowes,  that  the  Princess  May  gave  a 
large  order  for  Buckinghamshire  baby  lace  to  trim  the  little  garments  prepared  for 
Prince  Edward  of  York. 

Bullion  Lace. 

A  lace  made  of  gold  and  silver  threads.  The  earliest  laces  were  made  of  gold 
threads.  A  specimen  was  discovered  on  the  opening  of  a  Scandinavian  barrow 
near  Wareham  in  Dorsetshire.  Bullion  lace  is  still  much  used  in  the  East  for 
ornamenting  robes  of  state,  and  in  Italy  and  France  for  elaborate  priests'  vestments 
and  saints'  robes.  In  the  time  of  Queen  Anne,  Bullion  lace  was  lavishly  used  for 


Border  of  Gold  and  Silver  Gimp  ;   eighteenth  century. 


A     DICTIONARY     OF    LACE. 


133 


Eurano  Needle-Point  Lace.  7i  inches  wide.  The  fine  net 
ground  is  made  entirely  with  the  needle.  Nineteenth 
century. 


decorating  the  livery  of  menservants  ;  and  in  its  braid  form  still  serves  this  purpose, 
and  that  of  ornamenting  the  uniforms  of  officers  in  the  army  and  navy.  Officers' 
epaulettes  are  of  Bullion  lace  or  braid,  really  of  gold  wire ;  the  thick  kind  is  called 
Bullion;  the  thinner  frisnre ;  the  flat  kind  or  braid  is  termed  clinquant ;  and  all  kinds 
are  classed  under  the  name 
cannetille. 

Bunt  Lace. 

This   is  described  under 
the  heading  Scotch  Lace. 

Burano  Lace. 

In  the  Island  of  Burano 
a  considerable  quantity  of 
Venetian  point  lace  was 
manufactured  during  the 
eighteenth  century.  The 
ground  was  the  reseau,  not 
the  bride  variety,  so  that,  in 
this  particular,  the  lace  resem- 
bled Alengon  and  Brussels. 
The  thread  used  was  ex- 
tremely fine  and  delicate.  Until  1845  the  art  of  lace-making  lingered  on  in  the 
nunneries,  but  little  was  made  elsewhere.  During  recent  years  a  revival  has  taken 
place,  and  the  Burano  lace  of  the  present  day  is  in  no  way  inferior  to  the  old  fabric, 
while  laces  identical  with  the  finest  Venetian,  Rose  Point,  Point  de  Gaze,  Alencon, 
and  Argentan  are  produced,  which  rival  in  beauty  such  laces  made  in  the  best 
years  of  their  native  manufacture. 

In  1874  M.  Seguin  wrote,  "There  still  £xist  Some  women  who  make  needle- 
point lace  at  Burano,  a  small  island  not  far  from  Venice,  where  in  past  times  the 
most  famous  laces  were  produced." 

The  revival  of  the  Burano  lace  industry,  which  took  place  at  the  same  time  as 

that  of  Venice,  Pelestrina, 
and  Chioggia,  is  one  of  the 
most  interesting  pages  of 
modern  lace  history,  and 
should  inspire  those  who  are 
desirous  of  helping  the  in- 
dustrial classes  of  their  own 
country  to  commercial  pros- 
perity. In  1872  the  hard 
winter  reduced  the  fishing 


Point  Gaze,  or  Point  Bruxelles,  made  at  the  Royal  Lace  School 
at  Burano  ;  late  nineteenth  century. 


population  of  Burano  to  semi- 
starvation.  Relief  was  given  temporarily  and  a  fund  was  created,  headed  by  Queen 
Margherita  of  Italy  and  the  Pope,  for  resuscitating  the  lace  industry.  One  old 
woman,  Cencia  Scarpariola,  had  worked  at  the  old  Burano  point  and  could 
remember  the  stitches,  but  could  not  teach  them.  Madame  Anna  Bellorio  d'Este, 


i34  HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

the  present  mistress  of  the  Burano  school,  watched  the  worker,  practised  herself, 
then  taught  eight  pupils.  Ladies  interested  in  the  work  came  forward  with  the 
necessary  funds ;  and  the  excellence  of  the  lace  produced  assured  constant  orders. 
The  artist  Signor  Paulo  Fambri,  together  with  the  Princesse  Giovanelli  and 
Comtesse  Marcello,  were  on  the  board  of  direction,  and  during  the  first  year  prizes 
were  gained  for  the  excellence  of  the  work.  At  the  present  moment  600  workers 
are  constantly  employed  either  at  the  Royal  Lace  School,  which  has  its  head- 
quarters in  the  Municipal  Buildings,  or  at  their  own  homes,  after  receiving  not  less 
than  two  years'  instruction  at  the  school.  There  is  a  school  of  design  in  connection 
with  the  factory,  and  excellent  results  have  been  obtained  from  the  slight  artistic 
training  which  is  necessary  for  the  worker  in  the  higher  branches.  The  prosperity 
of  the  island  has  increased  enormously,  the  marriage  rate  has  doubled  in  twenty 
years,  and  many  a  young  worker  is  able  to  save  out  of  her  earnings  the  ^"30  or 
^"40  which  will  purchase  a  little  cottage  to  serve  as  her  dot. 

Only  the  choicest  and  most  beautiful  kinds  of  lace  are  made  at  Burano  at 
the  present  day ;  they  include  Point  de  Venise,  Tagliato  a  fogliami,  Point  de 
Venise  a  la  rose,  Point  d'Argentan,  Point  d'Alencon,  Point  de  Bruxelles,  and 
Point  d'Angleterre. 

Campane  Lace. 

A  bobbin-made  edging,  used  to  sew  at  the  edge  of  cambric  muslin  or  stuffs, 
also  for  widening  other  laces,  and  occasionally  to  replace  picot  or  pearl.  In  1690 
it  is  described  as  "  a  king  of  narrow  pricked  lace."  The  word  "  pricked  "  refers 
to  the  pricking  of  the  pattern  upon  the  pillow.  Campane  laces  were  also  made  of 
gold  and  coloured  silks,  and  had  a  scalloped  edge.  These  were  used  for  trimming 
mantles  and  scarves.  In  the  wardrobe  accounts  of  George  I.  an  entry  appears  of 
gold  Campane  buttons.  Campane  lace  is  now  unknown  to  commerce. 

Cannetille. 

Another  name  for  Bullion  Lace,  under  which  heading  it  is  described. 

Carnival  Lace. 

A  reticella  lace  made  in  Italy,  Spain,  and  France  during  the  sixteenth 
century;  its  distinguishing  feature  was  the  pattern,  which  was  formed  of  the 
cyphers,  crests,  and  armorial  bearings  of  the  families  for  whom  it  was  made  ;  in 
this  particular  only  does  it  differ  from  other  reticella  lace. 

Large  quantities  of  it  were  used  in  the  making  of  the  trousseaux  of  brides  of 
noble  houses;  and  the  garments  which  were  trimmed  with  it  were  worn  only  at  the 
wedding  and  upon  great  ceremonies  and  state  occasions  afterwards,  such  as  carnivals. 
It  is  sometimes  called  BridkHace. 

Carrickmacroff  Lace. 

Like  all  Irish  lace,  this  is  a  copy  of  the  lace  of  other  countries.  There  are  two 
kinds  now  made  in  Co.  Monaghan,  the  Applique  and  Guipure.  Applique  is 
worked  upon  machine-made  net ;  the  Guipure,  which  is  really  more  of  an 
embroidery  than  a  lace,  is  made  with  finest  Mull  muslin  or  lawn,  upon  which  the 
design  is  traced  ;  a  thread  is  then  run  round  the  outlines  of  the  design  or  overcast 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE.  135 

very  closely,  the  centres  of  the  flowers  are  cut  away,  button-holed,  and  filled  with 
open  stitches  and  wheels.  The  various  detached  parts  of  the  pattern  are  united 
with  bars  ornamented  with  pearls  or  picots ;  the  material  is  then  cut  away  close  to 
the  overcast.  This  lace  when  washed  is  apt  to  fray  away  from  the  overcast,  so 
should  be  handled  with  great  care. 

Caterpillar  Lace. 

Caterpillar  lace  was  once  made  at  Munich  by  means  of  large  hairy  caterpillars. 
A  man  had  the  ingenious  idea  of  making  the  insects  unconscious  lace-makers. 
He  made  a  paste  of  the  food  of  the  caterpillars,  which  was  thinly  spread  on  a  flat 
stone.  A  lace  design  was  then  traced  upon  the  paste  with  oil,  and  the  insects 
were  placed  at  the  bottom  of  the  stone,  which  was  put  in  an  upright  position. 
As  they  ate  their  way  from  the  bottom  to  the  top,  they  avoided  all  parts  touched 
with  the  oil,  and  spun  a  strong  web  as  they  went,  which  served^  to  connect  the 
uneaten  parts  together.  The  lightness  of  the  lace  thus  formed  was  extraordinary. 
The  corresponding  quantity  made  in  finest  flax  thread  weighed  hundreds  of  times 
heavier  than  the  web  of  the  catterpillar. 

Caul  Lace. 

The  ancient  name  for  Netting. 

Ceylon  Pillow  Lace. 

This  is  made  by  the  native  women.  That  it  resembles  the  lace  of  Malta  is 
accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  the  knowledge  of  its  manufacture  was  probably 
imported  by  early  settlers  who  had  acquired  the  art  of  making  Maltese  lace  from 
the  Venetians  who  then  owned  the  island.  It  is  of  no  commercial  value. 

Chantilly  Lace. 

A  bobbin  lace  made  of  black  silk  and  linen  thread.  Flax  thread  lace  was 
first  made  at  Chantilly  in  1740.  Previous  to  this  there  had  been  a  lace  establish- 
ment formed  at  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century  by  Catherine  de  Rohan, 
Duchesse  de  Longueville  :  she  had  a  lace  school  at  her  chateau  at  Etripagny,  where 
the  double  or  Chantilly  ground  was  first  made.  The  workers  originally  came  from 
Dieppe  and  Havre,  and  the  town  of  Chantilly  rapidly  became  the  centre  of  a 
district  of  lace-makers ;  the  principal  villages  employed  in  the  industry  were  Saint 
Maximien,  Viarmes,  Meric,  Luzarches,  and  Dammartin. 

Narrow  laces  were  first  made ;  these  were  afterwards  replaced  by  guipures, 
white  thread  and  black  silk  laces.  The  last-named  were  the  black  silk  blonde  laces 
which  made  Chantilly  so  famous.  The  black  laces  were  at  first  not  approved  at 
Versailles,  but  both  Marie  Antoinette  and  the  Princess  de  Lamballe  afterwards 
patronised  the  Chantilly  lace  factory,  as  is  proved  by  an  old  order  book  belonging 
to  a  lace  firm.  Madame  Dubarry  was  a  large  purchaser,  and  seems  to  have 
delighted  in  the  patterns.  The  workers  at  Chantilly  incurred  the  displeasure  of 
the  mob  at  the  time  of  the  French  Revolution,  and  many  of  the  unfortunate  lace- 
makers  perished  with  their  aristocratic  patrons  on  the  scaffold  ;  the  royal  industry, 
in  fact,  practically  ceased  to  exist,  and  it  is  not  until  1805,  when  white  blonde 
became  the  rage  in  Paris,  that  we  again  hear  of  Chantilly  laces.  The  taste  for 


i36 


HISTORY     OF     HAND-MADE     LACE. 


black  lace  eventually  revived,  and  vast  quantities  were  made  for  export  to  Spain 
and  the  American  colonies. 

The  fineness  of  the  reseau  ground,  the  close  workmanship    of   the   flowers, 
together  with  the  cordonnet  of  flat  untwisted  silk,  are  characteristics  of  the  lace 
much  admired  by  connoisseurs,  who  are  able  to  detect  the  subtle  difference  between 
the    fabrics 
made  at  Cal- 
vados     and 
those  of  Chan- 
tilly. 

(Further 
details  are 
given  under 
Blonde  de 
Caen  and 


Blonde 
Lace.) 


Net 


Chenille 
Lace. 

A  needle- 
point lace 
made  in 
France  during 
the  eighteenth 
century.  The 
ground  was  a 
silk  honey- 
comb reseau. 
The  patterns 
were  chiefly 
geometrical, 
and  were  out- 
lined with  fine 
white  chenille  ; 


Scarf  of  Chantilly  Lace ;  nineteenth  century. 


the  fillings  were  thick  coarse  thread  stitches. 


Chioggia  Lace. 

Bobbin  lace,  resembling  the  old  Flemish  laces,  but  coarser  in  quality,  is  no^ 
much  made  at  the  Island  of  Chioggia,  near  Venice.     The  revival  in  this  industry 
took  place  under  the  direction  of  Fambri  in  1872,  at  the  same  time  as  the  revival 
in  needle-point  lace-making  at  Burano  was  initiated. 

Church  Lace. 

An  Italian  needle-point  lace  made  in  the  seventeenth  century  for  the 
borderings  of  altar-cloths  and  priests'  vestments.  The  ground  was  coarse,  and  the 
pattern  in  button-hole  stitch  was  worked  upon  it.  Elaborate  pictures  were  made, 
figure  subjects  illustrating  incidents  in  the  Bible  and  Church  history  being 


A     DICTIONARY     OF     LACE.  137 

wrought  in  the  button-hole  stitching.  The  rarest  and  most  beautiful  laces  of  all 
kinds  have  also  been  used  for  Church  purposes  since  lace  was  first  made.  Further 
details  are  given  in  the  chapter  on  "  Ecclesiastical  Lace." 

Cinq  Trous. 

A  lace  made  at  Le  Puy  and  in  other  parts  of  France ;  the  ground  is  five-sided 
mesh.  Le  Puy  Lace  is  described  under  its  own  heading. 

Clinquant. 

The  flat  kind  of  Bullion  Lace,  to  which  heading  the  reader  is  referred. 

Cluny  Guipure  Lace. 

This  is  one  of  the  earliest  forms  of  lace  known  ;  its  origin  is  lost  in  antiquity  ; 
it  was  known  as  Opus  Filatorium  in  early  times,  and  as  Opus  Araneum  or  Spider 
Work  in  the  Middle  Ages.  Many  patterns  of  these  laces  are  to  be  found  in  the 
pattern  books  of  Vinciola  of  the  sixteenth  century.  Cluny  Guipure  is  distinguished 
from  the  ordinary  darned  netting  or  Point  Conte,  by  raised  stitches,  wheels,  circles, 
and  triangles  ;  sometimes  a  shiny  glazed  thread  was  introduced  to  emphasize  the 
pattern,  as  the  thread  used  in  other  parts  of  the  lace  was  unglazed. 

What  is  known  as  modern  Cluny  lace  is  a  coarse,  thick,  strong  bobbin  variety, 
usually  of  old  design,  frequently  geometric  in  character.  It  is  made  in  France  at  the 
present  day,  and  in  Italy,  especially  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Como.  The  modern 
Cluny  lace  takes  its  name  from  an  ancient  dwelling-house  in  Paris,  which  is  now  the 
Musee  Cluny,  antique  art  treasures  being  stored  in  the  mansion  and  courtyard  ; 
possibly  it  was  thought  desirable  to  give  this  modern  type  of  lace  a  title  suggestive 
of  mediaeval  times.  (Further  particulars  will  be  found  under  Guipure.) 

Colbertan  Lace. 

A  network  lace,  made  in  France  in  the  seventeenth  century,  and  named  after 
Colbert,  the  King's  minister,  who  did  so  much  towards  establishing  lace- making  in 
France,  in  order  to  add  to  the  revenues  of  the  kingdom.  It  is  strange  that, 
although  Colbert  laid  such  stress  on  the  perfection  of  the  lace  to  be  made  at  the 
new  factories,  and  spared  neither  pains  nor  money  to  attain  beauty  and  delicacy  in 
the  Points  de  France,  even  sending  for  famous  Venetian  workers  to  instruct  the 
French  lace-makers,  yet  the  lace  named  after  him  should  have  been  a  common  and 
gaudy  fabric  with  network  of  open  square  mesh,  used  only  for  ordinary  household 
purposes. 

Coralline  Point. 

One  of  the  varieties  of  flat  Venetian  points  ;  its  make  has  never  been  achieved 
by  other  countries  than  Italy,  where  it  originated.  Its  characteristic  consists  in 
the  branching  coral-like  lines  which  meander  through  the  design,  giving  a  close  but 
somewhat  confused  effect. 

Corfu  Lace. 

A  coarse  Greek  lace,  made  by  the  natives  of  the  island,  but  of  little  value  or 
artistic  beauty. 
Courtrai  Lace. 

A  bobbin  lace  resembling  Valenciennes,  but  produced  in  greater  widths  than 
that  made  in  France  or  in  other  parts  of  Belgium.  In  the  last  century  the  laces  of 


138  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

Courtrai  were  in  high  favour,  being  known  as  fausse  Valenciennes,  as  were  all  those 


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Cluny  Guipure  Lace,  made  to  ornament  a  bed-quilt  belonging  to  Louis  XIII  ;   seventeenth  century. 

of  the  same  pattern  and  make  which  were  not  actually  produced  at  Valenciennes. 
Since  the  decay  of  lace-making  in  its  native  city,  the  terms  fausse  and  vrai,  with 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


139 


regard  to  Valenciennes  lace,  have  died  out,  though  often  mentioned  by  those  who 
do  not  see  the  absurdity  of  the  distinction.  The  story  was  set  on  foot  in  1804  by 
M.  Dieudonne,  who  states :  "  This  beautiful  lace  is  so  characteristic  of  the  place, 
that  it  is  a  fact  that  if  a  piece  of  Valenciennes  lace  is  begun  in  the  town  and 
finished  outside  the  walls,  the  commencement  will  be  the  more  perfectly  executed 
part,  even  though  the  same  work-woman  twist  the  bobbins  with  the  same  thread." 


D'Oyley  of  Crochet-Work  in  Cotton  Thread,  made  under  the  superintendence  of  the  Carmelite 
Convent,  New  Boss,  co.  Wexford  ;  nineteenth  century. 


M.   Dieudonne   evidently  believed   in    magic,  and  it  is  extraordinary  how  many 
people  have  seriously  repeated  his  canard. 

Crete  Lace. 

Lace  of  the  loose  thread  torchon  variety  is  made  in  Candia  or  Crete.  The 
designs  are  generally  geometrical,  and  the  ground  is  formed  of  coloured  silks  or 
dyed  flax.  The  distinguishing  feature  of  this  lace,  which  is  of  ancient  origin,  is  the 


1 4o  HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

embroidery  in  coloured  filoselle  in  chain  stitch  upon  the  outline  of  the  lace  ;  the 
effect  is  extremely  gaudy. 

Creva  Drawn  Lace. 

Made  in  Brazil  by  the  negroes.  It  is  evidently  a  rough  copy  of  the  Italian 
drawn-work,  and  has  no  artistic  merit. 

Crochet. 

This  art  was  known  in  Europe  in  the  sixteenth  century,  and  is  so  connected 
with  lace  that  it  deserves  mention.  The  word  is  derived  from  the  French  crochet  or 
croc,  and  the  old  Danish  krooke,  a  hook.  Crochet  was  done  chiefly  in  the  nunneries, 
and  was  indifferently  classed  as  nuns'  work  with  lace  and  embroidery,  until  the  end 
of  the  seventeenth  century.  Under  the  name  of  Irish  Point,  it  has  attained  great 
perfection  in  Ireland,  chiefly  at  Monaghan,  where  the  art  was  known  much  earlier 
than  in  England.  In  Scotland  it  attracted  little  attention  until  about  1838,  when 
it  became  fashionable  as  a  fancy  work  for  the  leisured  classes.  Numerous  cottons 
have  been  manufactured  and  patterns  printed.  The  finer  and  more  intricate 
designs  are  called  Irish  Point.  Point  de  Tricot,  Raised  Rose  Crochet,  and  Honiton 
Crochet  are  made  for  commercial  purposes  by  the  peasantry  of  Ireland. 

Curragh  Lace. 

Another  name  for  Irish  Point. 

Cut-work. 

Cut-work,  or  Italian  Punto  Tagliato,  was  made  by  cutting  spaces  out  of  closely- 
woven  linen,  and  after  buttonholing  round  the  sides  to  prevent  fraying,  partly  filling 
in  the  space  with  ornamental  stitches.  Elaborate  embroidery  in  white  linen  thread 
is  usually  found  upon  the  plain  linen  in  ancient  specimens  of  this  work.  Gradually 
more  of  the  linen  was  cut  away,  and  more  elaborate  designs  were  filled  in,  until 
mere  threads  were  left ;  these  were  buttonholed  over,  and  Reticella  or  Greek  lace 
was  evolved. 

Another  method  of  making  cut-work,  which  obtained  later,  was  by  means  of  a 
light  wooden  frame,  on  which  threads  were  fastened  from  side  to  side,  crossing  and 
interlacing.  Under  this  reticulation  of  threads  was  fastened,  usually  with  gum,  a 
piece  of  fine  cloth  or  lawn,  called  "  quintain  "  (from  the  town  in  Brittany  where  the 
best  quality  was  made).  Then  the  net-work  was  sewn  to  the  lawn  background 
with  a  firm  edge  of  buttonhole  stitching,  which  followed  the  line  of  the  pattern 
desired.  The  superfluous  parts  of  the  lawn  were  cut  away  afterwards,  so  that  the 
design  remained  in  lawn,  accentuated  with  the  buttonhole  edging,  which  gave  a 
slightly  raised  effect.  This  variety  was  sometimes  erroneously  called  "Punto  a 
Reticella." 

Cut-work  and  embroidery  executed  in  the  convents  in  Italy  is  called  Greek 
lace,  and  it  is  likely  that  the  art  first  came  from  the  Ionian  Isles  and  Greece,  which 
were  closely  connected  with  the  Venetian  Republic.  The  work  once  transplanted 
into  Venice,  where  all  the  arts  were  pursued  with  such  practical  earnestness,  it 
quickly  grew  in  beauty  and  variety  of  pattern.  Complex  stitches  were  introduced, 
alterations  and  delicate  improvements  were  made  on  the  original  modes,  until  in 
the  sixteenth  century  the  linen  threads  of  foundation  linen  were  altogether  dispensed 


A     DICTIONARY     OF    LACE. 


141 


with,  and  any  pattern  was  drawn  and  worked  on  parchment ;  thus  Punto  in  Aria 
could  develop  into  the  graceful  and  beautiful  "  Point  de  Venise,"  for  lace-making 
was  no  longer  hampered  by  the  necessity  for  square  and  rectangular  designs  only 
because  of  the  linen  threads  being  stretched  only  at  right  angles. 


In  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries  Punto  Tagliato,  or  cut-work,  was  much 
used.  In  1558,  Matteo  Pagan  published  the  "  Glory  and  Honour  of  Cut  Laces  and 
Open  Laces,"  and  a  Venetian,  F.  Vinciolo,  printed  in  Paris,  in  1587,  designs  for 
"  Point  Coupe."  Cut-work  declined  in  popularity  when  other  laces  of  more 
elaborate  workmanship  were  made.  At  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century, 


142 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


however,  Lady  Layard  states  that  in  the  inventory  of  the  linen  garments  which 
form  a  part  of  the  dowry  of  Cecelia  de  Mula,  cloths  with  broad  borders  of  cut 
lace  are  mentioned. 

When  used  for  altar  cloths,  bed  curtains,  or  other  large  surfaces,  cut-work 
was  arranged  with  alternate  squares  of  plain  linen.  The  armorial  shield  of  the 
family  was  a  favourite  device.  Initial  letters,  fleurs-de-lis,  and  lozenges  were 
frequently  pressed  into  the  service  for  ornamentation.  Many  samplers,  or  "sam 
cloths,"  are  still  extant,  which  show  us  patterns  for  cut-work.  The  pattern  books 
being  costly  and  easily  destroyed,  for  the  pattern  had  to  be  traced  on  to  the  cloth 


Collar  of  White  Silk  Cyprus  Bobbin  Lace  ;   latter  half  of  the  nineteenth  century.     Exhibited  in  the 
Cyprus  Court  of  the  Colonial  and  Indian  Exhibition,  1886. 


with  a  style,  children  were  taught  to  copy  the  patterns  on  to  their  samplers. 
These  were  preserved  carefully,  and  they  have  frequently  been  found  upon  the  walls 
of  farmhouses  and  cottages,  where  lived  the  yeoman  ancestors  long  ago. 

Cyprus  Lace. 

A  lace  resembling  cut-work,  of  very  ancient  origin.  It  was  much  used  and 
highly  thought  of  in  the  Middle  Ages,  and  was  brought  to  England  and 
France.  An  ancient  variety  was  made  of  gold  and  silver  threads.  Its  manu- 
facture is  now  extinct.  The  peasants,  however,  now  make  a  coarse  thread 
lace,  and  some  fine  specimens  have  recently  been  made  of  silk.  These  were 
exhibited  in  the  Cyprus  Court  of  the  Colonial  and  Indian  Exhibition,  held  in 
London  in  1886. 


A     DICTIONARY     OF    LACE. 


H3 


Dalecarlian  Lace. 

A  bobbin  lace,  made  by  the  peasants  for  their  own  use  in  Dalecarlia,  Sweden. 
In  examining  this  fabric  we  are  able  to  see  the  identical  patterns  of  lace  used  by 
the  rest  of  Europe  two  centuries  ago,  and  if  we  watched  its  manufacture  we  should 
also  see  the  method  of  bobbin  lace-making  of  two  hundred  years  ago,  for  these 
peasants  have  never  changed  in  any  way 
their  mode  of  making  nor  their  patterns 
— an  extraordinary  example  of  conserva-  §: 
tism,  worthy  of  China  itself.  The  firmness  % 
and  solidity  of  this  lace  is  extraordinary.  g 
It  is  made  to  absorb  a  large  quantity  of 
starch,  and  is  then  used  standing  outward  y 
from  the  face,  as  a  shelter  from  the  sun.  5. 
Its  coffee  tint  is  greatly  admired.  The  ^ 
fabric  is  seldom  washed — only  re-starched  %% 
when  more  stiffness  is  necessary.  The  3. 3 
lace- workers  are  few  and  much  scattered  a;1-* 
over  large  districts.  As  there  is  no  centre  £§ 
of  the  industry,  and  no  management  of  I  g 
the  methods  and  patterns,  the  work  is  ~  §"• 
gradually  dying  out.  {§•£- 

ft 

Danish  Lace.  g-g 

tf  p 
Cut- work  was  well-known  in  Denmark      «  |_ 

long  before  pillow-lace  making  was  intro-  3- a. 
duced  from  Brabant ;  it  is  still  used  by  3  g 
the  peasants  for  ornamenting  their  best  ^3' 
household  and  table  linen,  namely,  that  &^ 
used  on  the  occasions  of  births,  deaths, 
and  marriages.  Lace-making  has  not  t^ 
been  much  practised  in  Denmark,  but  in  g.^ 
North  Schleswig,  or  South  Jutland  as  it  rg, 
is  called,  a  manufacture  was  established  b 
in  the  sixteenth  century.  It  was  in  1647 
that  a  merchant  named  Stienbeck  engaged  ^ 
twelve  persons  from  Westphalia  to  improve  jl 
the  trade ;  these  lace-makers  settled  in 
Tender  and  taught  both  men  and  women 
the  handicraft.  This  was  the  origin  of  & 
the  famous  Tender  lace ;  that  made  at 
other  placesjn  the  district  was  also  well- 
known ;  the  lace  was  both  black  and  white.  In  1712  the  work  was  improved  by 
the  settlement  of  a  number  of  Brabant  bobbin-lace  makers.  The  patterns  of  the 
early  Tender  laces  are  Flemish  in  character;  the  Dutch  flowers  and  trollies  appear  ; 
in  later  specimens  the  Brabant  influence  is  traceable  in  the  finer  grounds  and  the 
open  stitches.  Mechlin  grounds  follow  with  the  run  patterns. 


i44  HISTORY     OF     HAND-MADE     LACE. 

The  Schleswig  laces  are  frequently  of  excellent  quality,  and  are  kept  as 
heirlooms  through  successive  generations.  When  the  fine  needle  laces  came  in 
there  was  less  solidity,  and  the  lace-makers  became  less  skilful.  The  best  work- 
women were  those  who  devoted  their  lives  to  making  one  special  pattern.  One 
widow  is  recorded  to  have  lived  to  the  age  of  eighty,  and  to  have  brought  up  seven 
children  on  the  produce  of  a  narrow  edging  sold  at  sixpence  a  yard.  Each  pattern 
had  its  local  name,  such  as  cock-eye,  spider,  lyre,  chimney  pot,  feather.  Tender 
lace  embraces  many  varieties.  In  1830  cotton  thread  was  introduced  into  it,  and 
the  quality  at  once  deteriorated.  The  lace  schools  were  given  up,  and  the  trade  fell 
into  the  hands  of  hawkers  who  could  not  afford  to  buy  the  fine  points.  The  Tender 
lace  trade  is  now  at  a  very  low  ebb. 

A  species  of  Tender  lace  work  is  made  by  drawing  the  threads  of  fine  muslin, 
like  the  Broderie  de  Nancy  or  drawn  work.  In  this  lace  work,  both  the  needle- 
point and  bobbin  laces  are  imitated,  the  muslin  being  drawn  out,  re-united,  and 
divided  so  as  to  follow  all  the  intricacies  of  a  flower  or  arabesque  design.  Some- 
times a  thin  cordonnet  outlines  the  pattern. 

Darned  Netting. 

Darned  Netting,  Darned  Lace,  or  Spider  Work,  is  one  of  the  earliest  forms  of 
lace  work ;  it  has  a  netted  ground.  During  the  Middle  Ages  it  was  called  Opus 
Araneum,  Ouvrages  Masches,  Punto  Ricamato  a  Maglia,  Lacis,  and  Point  Conte — 
this  last  when  the  ground  was  darned  with  a  counted  pattern. 

Darned  Netting  was  most  popular  all  over  Italy  in  the  sixteenth  century. 
Siena  was  specially  famous  for  it,  and  it  is  sometimes  called  Siena  Point.  The 
plain  netted  ground  was  made  as  are  garden  or  fishing  nets  of  the  present  day,  and 
the  pattern  darned  upon  this  rezel  or  ground.  The  groundwork  of  netting  was 
sometimes  in  square  meshes,  and,  according  to  an  old  pattern  book,  was  made  by 
commencing  with  "  a  single  thread,  and  increasing  a  stitch  on  each  side  until  the 
required  size  was  obtained."  If  a  strip  of  long  pattern  was  to  be  made,  the  netting 
was  continued  to  its  prescribed  length,  and  then  finished  off  by  reducing  a  stitch 
on  each  side.  It  was,  in  fact,  identical  with  modern  netting. 

This  plain  net-ground,  without  further  ornament,  was  much  used  for  bed 
furniture,  window  curtains,  and  valances,  unornamented.  It  was  called  Reseau, 
Rezel,  and  Rezeuil;  decorated  with  a  pattern — Lacis,  or  Darned  Netting.  It  is 
now  worked  with  fine  linen  thread  when  used  for  personal  adornment,  and  with 
coarse  threads  for  furniture.  Formerly,  coloured  silk  threads  and  those  of  gold  and 
silver  were  used;  these  are  still  much  employed  in  the  Russian  varieties.  Network 
is  darned  upon  with  counted  stitches  like  tapestry ;  it  is  then  called  Point  Conte, 
or  filet  brode  a  reprises  by  modern  French  workers  in  England,  and  in  Italy  the 
modern  variety  is  called  guipure  d'art.  The  net  is  stretched  upon  a  large  frame, 
and  the  worker  darns  the  pattern  upon  the  stretched  net ;  sometimes  half-a-dozen 
girls  are  to  be  seen  in  the  Venetian  lace  factories  at  work  upon  a  large  curtain  or 
bed-spread. 

Dentelle. 

The  French  term  for  lace.  Laces  were  known  as  dentelles  in  France  at  the 
end  of  the  sixteenth  century ;  before  that  time  they  were  called  passements. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF  LACE. 


Dentelle  a  la  Reine. 

A  needle-point  lace  made  in 
Amsterdam,  chiefly  by  French 
refugees,  after  the  revocation  of  the 
Edict  of  Nantes,  1685.  The  lace  had 
been  made  by  them  in  France,  so  that 
Dentelle  a  la  Reine  is  not  peculiar 
to  Amsterdam,  but  achieved  a  marked 
popularity  during  the  short  time  that 
it  was  made  in  Holland. 

Dentelle  a  la  Vierge. 

A  bobbin  lace  made  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Dieppe  by  the  peasants  ; 
Darned  Netting  (Italian),  26  inches  wide.  k  faas  a  douWe  Normandy  ground  and 

Dentelle  au  Fuseau.  a  simple  pattern. 

The  French  term  for  bobbin  lace. 
Dentelle  de  Fil. 

A  name  by  which  simple  thread  laces,  such  as  torchon,  are  sometimes  called. 


146 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Dentelle  Irlandaise. 

This  will  be  found  described  under  the  heading  Modern  Point  Lace. 

Dentelle  Redin. 

Lace  having  a  net  ground. 

Dentelle  Renaissance. 

Particulars  of  this  lace  are 
given  under  Modern  Point  Lace. 

Devonia   Lace. 

A  special  kind  of  Honiton 
Lace,  which  is  described  under 
that  heading. 

Devonshire  Lace. 

The  introduction  of  the  lace- 
making  industry  into  Devonshire 
is  attributed  to  the  Flemings  who 
took  refuge  in  England  during  the 
persecutions  of  the  Duke  of  Alva. 
It  is  more  probable,  however, 
that  the  narrow  silk  and  coarse 
thread  laces  were  already  made 
by  the  cottagers  in  Devonshire 
as  they  were  in  all  parts  of  Eng- 
land, and  that  the  Flemings 
improved  upon  these  early 
methods  by  introducing  their  own 
fine  threads  and  beautiful  jours 
and  fillings.  That  the  bone  lace 
trade  was  considerable  is  proved 
by  the  inscription,  to  be  seen  at 
the  west  end  of  Honiton  Parish 
Church:  —  "Here  lieth  ye  body 
of  James  Rodge,  of  Honiton,  in 
ye  County  of  Devonshire  :  Bone 
lace  seller,  who  hath  given  unto  ye  poor  of  Honiton  Parish  the  benyfite  of  £100 
for  ever  " — a  considerable  sum  in  the  seventeenth  century.  In  the  Lady  Chapel 
of  Exeter  Cathedral  the  monument  of  Bishop  Stafford  shows  a  network  collar 
with  good  design.  This  tomb  is  late  fourteenth  century  work.  In  the  same 
cathedral  the  recumbent  effigy  of  Lady  Doddridge  shows  cuffs  and  tucker  of  lace 
in  geometric  design.  These  tombs  are  in  splendid  preservation  even  now. 

So  excellent  was  the  make  of  English  lace  in  1660  that  a  royal  ordinance  of 
France  set  forth  that  a  mark  should  be  affixed  to  thread  lace  imported  from 
England  as  well  as  to  that  from  Flanders. 

The  lace  trade  was  carried  on  in  most  of  the  Devonshire  villages,  and  the 
lace-makers  were  pillaged  by  the  dragoons  in  the  suppression  of  Monmouth's 


Dentelle  a  la  Vierge  (local  name  for  Double-ground 
Lace)  made  by  the  peasants  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Dieppe  ;  nineteenth  century. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


147 


rebellion  in  1680.     In  Defoe's  time  the  lace  manufacture  extended  from  Exmouth 
to  Torbay. 

By  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century  the  Devonshire  workers  could  rival  the 
beauty  of  Flemish  lace,  and  it  is  a  mistake  to  believe  that  all  Point  d'Angleterre 
was  made  in  Belgium.  Trolly  lace 
was  made  in  Devonshire  until,  some 
fifty  years  ago,  fashion  ceased  to  de- 
mand this  special  kind.  Lappets  and 
scarves  as  well  as  baby  lace  were 
made.  Devonshire  Trolly  lace  was 
made  with  English  thread  of  a  coarser 
quality  than  that  of  Flanders.  Men 
and  women  both  worked  at  Devonshire 
Trolly  lace,  and  every  boy,  sixty  years 
ago,  attended  the  lace  schools  until  he 
was  old  enough  to  work  in  the  fields, 
etc.  When  outdoor  labour  was  scarce, 
or  the  fishermen  were  unable  to  go  to 
sea,  they  returned  to  their  lace-work 
to  add  to  their  weekly  wage. 

Another  Devonshire  lace  was  the 
so-called  Greek  lace,  which  resembled 
simple  Torchon.  It  was  introduced 
from  Malta  into  the  small  village  of 
Woodbury  by  the  wife  of  William  IV. 
The  little  colony  of  workers  copied  the 
coarse  geometric  designs  with  great 
facility. 

Black  lace  was  made  in  Devon- 
shire until  twenty  years  ago,  the 
designs  being  those  of  the  Honiton 
lace,  and  the  working  identical.  Some- 
times the  Honiton  sprigs  are  mounted 
on  black  silk  machine-made  net ; 
sometimes  they  are  united  by  brides 
or  bars,  as  in  the  Honiton  Guipure. 
The  making  of  black  silk  lace  in 
Devonshire  has  now  completely  died 
out,  though  many  of  the  old  workers 
still  remember  to  have  seen  the  work 
done.  It  was  with  the  greatest  diffi- 
culty that  we  were  able  to  obtain  a 
few  specimens  of  this  now  extinct 
industry  at  Colyton  and  Sidmouth. 

Axminster,  once  the  great  head- 
quarters of  the  Devonshire  trade,  has 


148 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


now  no  workers,  nor  can  a  yard  of  Devon-made  lace  be  purchased  in  the  town.  In 
Colyton,  Beer,  Seaton,  Colyford,  Shute,  Sidmouth,  and  other  villages  and  towns 
a  few  old  lace -makers  are  busy  at  the  sprigs,  collars  and  ties,  which  were  fashion- 
able in  the  early  Victorian  period.  They  draw  from  the  stock  of  "prickings" 

possessed  by  their 
mothers  and  grand- 
mothers, often  distorted 
beyond  recognition  by 
frequent  working.  Little 
attempt  is  made  to  supply 
any  demand  of  modern 
fashion,  and  new  and 
artistic  designs  are 
looked  upon  with  dis- 
trust. This  being  the 
case,  it  is  little  wonder 
that  the  payment  is  poor, 
and  children  and  young 
girls  do  not  learn  the 
stitches,  as  they  are  able 
to  earn  twice  as  much 
money  at  dressmaking, 
millinery,  and  other 
trades.  The  conse- 
quence is  that  there  are 
fewer  workers  each  year, 
as  the  old  women  die  and 
young  ones  do  not  take 
their  place.  If  artistic 
direction  of  the  workers 

could  be  obtained,  together  with  co-operation  with  some  well-established  lace 
merchants  who  would  dispose  of  the  lace,  a  revival  of  the  lace  industry  of  Devon- 
shire might  take  place  ;  but  though  Mrs.  Fowler,  of  Honiton,  does  much  to 
encourage  the  fine  grades  of  work,  Mrs.  Tread  win,  of  Exeter,  can  show  good 
specimens  from  her  employees,  and  Miss  Trevelyan  has  done  much  by  giving  out 
fine  Italian  patterns  and  privately  encouraging  the  workers,  yet  a  larger  and 
wider  effort,  combined  with  systematic  trade  co-operation,  is  needed  to  put  the 
industry  on  a  sound  commercial  basis. 

Dieppe  Lace. 

This  is  sometimes  called  Dieppe  Point,  when  the  quality  is  fine.  It  is  a 
bobbin  lace  resembling  Valenciennes,  but  less  complicated  in  its  make,  requiring 
fewer  bobbins ;  and,  while  only  a  length  of  eight  inches  of  Valenciennes  can  be 
worked  without  detaching  the  lace  from  the  pillow,  Dieppe  Lace  can  be  rolled. 

From  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century  lace-making  has  been  the 
principal  occupation  of  the  women  of  Normandy,  the  wonderful  caps  with  long 


Honiton  Lace  Sprig  made  on  the  pillow  with  bobbins  ;  nineteenth  century. 


A    DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


149 


lappets  richly  trimmed  being  the  pride  of  the  well-to-do  peasant  families.  In 
1692,  the  Governor  of  Havre  found  the  lace  trade  employed  20,000  women  in  the 
department.  Haarlem  thread  was  used,  both  black  and  white  laces  were  made, 
and  the  price  varied  from  five  sous  to  thirty  francs  per  ell.  The  most  thriving 
centres  of  the  Normandy  lace  trade  were  Havre,  Honfleur,  Eu,  Fecamp, 
Dieppe,  Pont  1'Eveque,  and  Pays  de  Caux.  Guipure  or  darned  net-work  and 
Valenciennes  were  also  produced. 

In  the  inventory  of 
Colbert's  household 
effects  "  Point  du  Havre" 
is  mentioned  as  trimming 
his  pillow  cases.  In  the 
eighteenth  century  the 
laces  of  Dieppe  and 
Havre  rivalled  those  of 
Argentan  and  Caen,  we 
are  informed  by  an  eight- 
eenth century  chronicler. 
Later,  we  read,  they 
yielded  only  in  precision 
of  design  and  fineness  of 
make  to  those  of  Mechlin. 
At  the  time  of  the  Revo- 
lution disastrous  effects 
were  felt  by  the  Nor- 
mandy lace-makers  and 
traders. 

Within  the  last  half- 
century  the  industry  has 
still  further  diminished, 
though  much  lace  is  still 
exported  to  Spain  and 
America.  In  1826,  a 

lace  school  was  established  at  Dieppe,  under  the  direction  of  two  sisters  from  a 
convent  at  Rouen.  This  school,  which  was  under  Royal  patronage,  is  most  suc- 
cessful ;  Valenciennes  of  every  width  is  made,  the  Belgian  variety  with  the  square- 
meshed  grounds  being  a  speciality.  The  thread  used  is  pure  flax  unmixed  with 
cotton.  The  design  most  popular  is  that  named  Poussin  (chicken) ;  other  patterns 
are  Ave  Maria  and  Vierge,  and  there  are  many  other  names  given  locally  by  the 
peasants. 

Dorsetshire  Lace. 

Wiltshire  and  Dorsetshire  bone  or  bobbin  lace  was  at  one  time  celebrated  for 
its  beauty.  In  the  time  of  Charles  II.,  one  Mary  Hurde,  of  Marlborough,  tells,  in 
her  "  Memoirs,''  how  she  was  apprenticed  to  a  maker  of  bone  lace  for  eight  years  ; 
and  after  that  time  was  over  she  apprenticed  herself  for  five  years  more.  This 


Drawn-work,  showing  how  the  threads  are  drawn  away  and  the 
thick  sections  buttonholed  ;  eighteenth  century. 


150 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


was  the  period  when  quantities  of  bobbin  lace  were  required  and  lace-making  in 
every  country  in  Europe  was  at  the  height  of  its  beauty  and  prosperity.  Since 
then  it  has  declined,  and  there  is  now  little  made  in  the  county. 

Drawn -work. 

Drawn-work,  or  Punto  Tirato,  is  one  of  the  most  ancient  forms  of  open  work 
and  plays  an  important  part 
in  the  evolution  of  lace.  It 
was  known  all  over  Europe 
as  Hamburg  Point,  Indian 
work  (when  executed  in 

muslin),  Opus  Tiratum,  Punto  W&UJf&K ^ ^  .* 

Tirato,    Broderie    de    Nancy,  M^^^li^  =    t      ^ 

Dresden  Point,  Fil   Tire,       ^ 
Drawn  -  work,     and      Tender      j 
Lace.     The  fabric  was  chiefly       t 
made  at  the  convents,  and  was      \ 
largely  used  for  ecclesiastical 
purposes  and  for  ornamenting      ? 
grave-clothes,    together    with      j 
cut-work  and  embroidery. 

The  material  in  old  drawn-       \ 
work  is  usually  loosely  woven 
linen.       The    threads    were 
retained  in  the  parts  where  the      ; 
pattern  was  thick,  and  where 
it  was  open  they  were  drawn       \ 
aside  and  caught  together  or      < 
drawn  away. 

0 

The  taste  for  drawn-work      \ 
of  the   geometrical    style  has 
recently   revived.      The   woof 
or    warp   threads    are    drawn 
away  from  coarse  evenly-       \ 
woven  linen  and  the  support-      ~ 
ing  threads,  which  remain  to      \ 
form  the  pattern,  are  button- 
holed or  overcast  with  fancy      ! 
stitches. 

1 

Broderie  de  Nancy,  I 
Dresden  Point,  and  Hamburg 
Point  were  usually  worked  in 
coloured  silk.  They  were 
frequently  enriched  with 
embroidery  and  coloured 
stitches. 


i 


A     DICTIONARY   OF  LACE.  151 

Dunkirk  Lace. 

Previous  to  1685  nearly  all  Flanders  laces  were  known  as  "  Malines  "  ;  the 
laces  of  Ypres,  Bruges,  and  Dunkirk  passed  under  that  name.  At  Paris,  Anne  of 
Austria  is  mentioned  as  wearing  a  veil  "  en  frezette  de  Maline."  French  blondes 
were  made  at  Dunkirk  later,  when  the  payment  of  the  lace-makers  is  thus  spoken 
of:  "Though  they  gain  but  twopence  half-penny  daily,  it  is  a  good  worker  who  will 


Border  of  English  Bobbin-made  Tape  Lace,  4J  inches  wide,  with  Needle-point 
Fillings  ;    eighteenth  century. 

finish  a  Flemish  ell,  twenty-eight  inches,  in  a  fortnight."     Mechlin  Lace  is  fully 
described  under  its  heading. 

Dutch  Lace. 

Holland  has  always  been  celebrated  for  her  flax  thread,  with  which  the  finest 
Brussels  and  other  laces  have  been  made,  rather  than  for  the  excellence  of  the  lace 
made  in  the  country.  Lace  schools  have  been  established  from  time  to  time, 


1 52  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE     LACE. 

one  in  1685,  when  the  Regency  Point  was  made.  Another,  where  Point 
d'Espagne  was  made,  was  protected  by  the  government,  but  it  did  not  flourish, 
notwithstanding  that  the  importation  of  foreign  laces  was  prohibited  in  the 
eighteenth  century.  Dutch  lace  is  coarse,  as  a  rule,  and  more  suitable  for  the 
ornamentation  of  household  linen  than  for  personal  wear. 

English  Laces. 

The  laces  made  in  England  in  the  fifteenth  century,  besides  cut-work  and 
drawn-work,  which  are  rather  lace-like  embroideries  than  lace,  consisted  of  narrow 
plaited  and  twisted  thread  borders.  Such  laces  were  used  to  unite  two  pieces  of  a 
garment,  an  example  of  which  we  see  in  the  boot  laces  of  the  present  day  and  in 
the  narrow  bands  for  hats.  Loosely-twisted  and  plaited  threads — "  purlings,"  as 


Border  of  Bobbin  Lace,  called  Buckinghamshire  "  Trolly  "  Lace,  2  inches  wide  ;  early 
nineteenth  century.  The  design  resembles  that  of  some  of  the  Mechlin  laces  made 
early  in  the  eighteenth  century  ;  the  reseau  is,  however,  composed  of  six-pointed 
star  meshes. 

they  were  called — for  ornamenting  the  edges  of  linen,  cambric,  silken  and  woollen 
fabrics,  were  also  made  at  this  early  period. 

The  Protestant  refugees  who  fled  to  England  in  1563  and  1571,  brought  with 
them  and  taught  to  English  artisans  the  art  of  making  "matches  of  hewne  stalks 
and  parchment  lace."  Queen  Elizabeth,  the  daintiest  of  dressers,  had  parchment 
lace  "  of  watchett  and  syllver  at  seven  and  eightpence  the  ounce." 

In  the  seventeenth  century  the  Venetian  fashion  in  linen  needlework  reached 
England,  and  the  artistic  use  of  linen  threads  became  known  ;  such  knowledge 
being  assisted  in  many  places  in  England  from  time  to  time  by  Flemish  or  other 
foreign  lace-makers  who  were  driven  out  of  their  own  country,  as  well  as  by  the 
importation  of  foreign  laces. 

Bone  lace  came  into  vogue,  the  mevletti  a  piombini  of  Italy,  where  the  bobbins 
were  weighted  with  iron,  and  the  passements  au  fuseaux  of  France.  In  the  seven- 
teenth century  all  Europe  felt  the  influence  of  Colbert's  efforts  in  France  to 
encourage  the  art  of  lace-making.  Bobbin  lace-making  was  much  more  widely 
practised  in  England  than  needle-point  lace-making,  which,  being  a  more  costly 
industry,  required  the  powerful  incentive  of  State  aid  to  assist  it— an  assistance 
which  in  France  and  other  countries  was  accorded  to  it. 

Owing  to  the  patronage  of  Catherine  of  Aragon  English  lace  began  to  be  of 
some  value,  and  by  Elizabeth's  time  it  was  frequently  mentioned  by  the  court 


A     DICTIONARY   OF  LACE. 


gossips  of  the  age.  It 
continued  to  improve, 
and  Acts  of  Parliament 
were  passed  to  protect 
the  trade  from  foreign 
competition.  Much  of  the 
Point  d'Angleterre  attri- 
buted to  Flanders  was 
made  in  England,  which 
country  has  hitherto 
received  but  scant  credit 
for  her  point  lace  from 
Mrs.  Bury  Palliser  and 
other  historians  of  lace. 
Although  no  kind, 
with  the  exception  of 
Honiton  (in  Devonshire), 
has  been  specially  identi- 
fied with  one  locality, 
consequent  on  the  varied 
settlements  of  foreign 
workers,  yet  Bedford- 
shire, Buckinghamshire 
and  Northamptonshire 
are  usually  considered 
the  centres  for  the  pro- 
duction of  English  Lille, 
Valenciennes,  and  plaited 
laces,  Brussels,  Maltese, 
guipures,  and  black  laces. 
In  Middlesex  black  and 
white  blonde  laces  were 
produced,  and  Dorset- 
shire was,  until  the  eight- 
eenth century,  famous 
for  the  laces  of  Bland- 
ford  and  Lyme  Regis. 
A  century  ago  the  laces 
made  in  Devonshire  and 
Cornwall  were  of  con- 
siderable variety,  but  at 
present  Honiton  applica- 
tion and  bobbin  lace  are 
chiefly  made.  Descrip- 
tions of  the  laces  will  be 
found  under  their  various 
headings. 


Lappet  of  Bobbin-made  Point  d'Ang-leterre,  style  of  Louis  XV.  ; 
eighteenth  century. 


i54  HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

English  Lille. 

This  name  was  given  to  bobbin  lace  made  in  Bedfordshire,  Northamptonshire, 
and  Buckinghamshire,  during  the  eighteenth  century,  on  account  of  the  close 
copying  of  the  Lille  pattern  by  the  English  workers.  It  is  described  under  the 
headings  Lille  and  Arras  Laces. 

English  Point. 

English  Point,  or  Point  d'Angleterre,  which  is  extremely  beautiful,  equal  in 
design  and  execution  to  many  of  the  French  and  Venetian  points,  has  not  received 
the  attention  with  regard  to  its  English  origin  which  it  deserves.  The  fact  that 
large  quantities  were  smuggled  into  England  from  Belgium  in  the  seventeenth 
century,  when  enormous  supplies  were  demanded  by  fashion,  has  given  rise  to  the 
belief  that  all  Point  d'Angleterre  was  made  in  Belgium,  which  was  by  no  means  the 
case.  Rodge,  of  Devonshire,  obtained  the  Flemish  secret  of  making  the  fine 
fillings  and  jours  which  give  the  finishing  touch  in  rendering  Point  d'Angleterre 
one  of  the  most  perfect  types  of  lace  which  have  ever  been  invented.  In  this  lace 
the  reseau  is  always  worked  with  the  bobbins  after  the  toile,  or  pattern,  has  been 
executed,  the  threads  being  attached  to  the  open  edge  of  the  toile  and  worked  in 
round  the  pattern.  There  are  frequently  to  be  seen  raised  ribs  on  the  leaves  and 
in  other  parts  of  the  design,  such  raised  effect  being  brought  about  by  twisting 
and  plaiting  of  the  bobbins,  and  never  by  using  thicker  thread.  Great  diversity 
of  ground  characterises  this  most  beautiful  of  laces.  The  mesh  reseau  frequently 
varies  in  size  in  single  specimens,  and  brides,  also  bobbin-made,  appear  more 
especially  to  accentuate  the  design,  in  which  case  the  specimen  is  called  Point 
d'Angleterre  a  Brides.  Occasionally  fine  needle-point  fillings  are  added. 

It  is  quite  time  English  people  realised  that  one  of  the  finest  results  of  the 
lace  industry  which  the  world  has  ever  seen,  was  an  original  English  product,  and 
that  it  only  owed  an  occasional  improvement  in  fine  stitching  to  foreign  influence. 
Even  in  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries,  when  lace  was  at  its  best,  Point 
d'Angleterre  held  its  own  for  beauty  with  the  finest  laces  of  Italy,  and  was  worn  by 
the  elegantes  of  Paris  as  one  of  the  most  beautiful  laces  obtainable.  It  is  much  to 
be  regretted  that  the  debased  designs  of  Devonshire,  so  deplored  a  quarter  of  a 
century  ago,  cannot  be  improved,  and  an  industry  revived  which  has  lain  dormant 
for  so  many  years. 

The  needle-point  lace  worked  to  a  small  extent  by  the  leisured  classes  in 
England  at  the  present  day,  is  usually  made  of  braid  of  varying  sizes  and  widths 
arranged  in  a  pattern,  the  design  being  filled  in  with  stitches  copied  from  those 
used  in  antique  foreign  needle-points. 

Filet  Brode  a  Reprises. 

The  French  name  for  modern  Darned  Netting,  under  which  heading  it  is 
described. 

Filet  de  Canasier. 

The  French  name  for  Macrame. 

Fil  Tire. 

The  French  term  for  Drawn-work. 


Portrait  of  Mme.   Q.  den   Dubbelde,    by   B.   van  der  Heist.       From    a    photograph    by    Hanfstaengl. 
The  white  lace  is  Point   de   Flandre ;    the    black,    Chantilly. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


155 


Fino  d'Erbe  Spada. 

Lace  made  from  the  fibre  of  the  aloe. 


It  is  described  under  Aloe  Lace. 


Flemish  Bobbin-made   Silk   Lace,   5  inches 
wide.     Seventeenth  century. 


Fisherman's  Lace. 

A  bobbin  lace,  described  under  the  heading  Point  Pecheur. 

Flanders  Lace. 

Flanders  asserts  priority  over  Italy  in  the  invention  of  both  needle-point  and 
bobbin  lace.  Certainly  it  was  a  country 
where  both  varieties  of  the  fabric  early 
became  articles  of  commerce,  and  the  indus- 
try throve  for  more  than  two  centuries  on 
account  of  the  encouragement  and  liberty 
accorded  to  the  workers.  In  the  Church 
of  St.  Peter's,  at  Louvain,  there  is  a 
fifteenth-century  portrait  in  which  the 
figure  is  adorned  with  lace ;  and  Baron  Ruffenberg,  in  his  memoirs,  asserts 
that  lace  caps  were  worn  as  early  as  the  fourteenth  century.  A  Flemish  poet  sings 
the  praises  of  lace-making  in  1651 — "  Threads  which  the  dropping  spider  in  vain 
attempts  to  imitate."  In  the  seventeenth  century,  when  Colbert  established  the 
manufactory  of  the  points  of  France,  Flanders  was  alarmed  at  the  number  of  lace- 
makers  who  had  emigrated,  and  passed  an  Act,  dated  December,  1698,  threatening 

with  punishment  any  who  should  entice  her 
work-people  away.  Certainly  it  was  the 
lace  industry  that  saved  the  country  from 
ruin  after  the  disastrous  wars  of  the  six- 
teenth century. 

The  Flanders  lace-workers  taught  the 
art  of  bobbin  lace-making  to  every  country 
of  Northern  Europe.  The  varieties  of 
Flanders  lace  are  manifold  ;  many  of  them 
are  still  wrought  at  the  present  day.  The 
most  celebrated  are  old  Flemish,  the  only 
original  lace  of  Flanders,  known  as  Trolle 
Kant,  after  which  English  Trolly  lace  has 
been  named  ;  Brussels  ;  Point  de  Flandre,  or 
Point  d'Anglcterre  ;  Point  Gaze,  first  made 
in  the  fifteenth  century,  and  now  as  beauti- 
fully worked  as  ever ;  Mechlin,  or  Point 
de  Malines,  made  at  Antwerp,  Lierre,  and 

Turnhout ;   Lille,  made  in  French  Flanders  ;    Valenciennes,  made  at  Ypres,  Alost, 
Courtrai,  and  Bruges.     Black  blonde  lace  is  made  at  Grammont.     Descriptions 
of  these  laces  are  given  under  their  various  headings. 
Flat  Points. 

A  term  used  for  laces  made  without  any  raised  work  in  relief,  to  distinguish 
them  from  the  raised  points. 

Florentine  Lace. 

Lace  was  made  at  Florence  at  a  very  early  date,  the  poet  Feregnola  mentioning 


Flemish  Needle-point  Lace  Collar,  8i 
inches  wide.  The  design  is  outlined 
with  raised  buttonhole  stitching. 
Seventeenth  century. 


i56 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE     LACE. 


it  in  1546.  Henry  VIII.  of  England  granted  to  two  Florentines  the  privilege 
of  importing,  for  three  years,  all  "manner  of  fringys  and  passements  wrought 
with  gold  and  silver  or  other  wire."  Florentine  lace  has  no  marked  pecularity, 
and  is  merged  in  the  other  Italian  laces,  which  are  described  under  their  respective 
headings. 

French  Laces. 

It  was  at  Le  Puy  that  the  first  French  lace  was  made,  and  at  the  present  day 
the  province  has  a  large  and  flourishing  lace  trade,  no 
fewer  than  100,000  workwomen  being  scattered  along  the 
Haute  Loire,  the  Loire,  and  Puy  de  Dome.  To  Italy,  in 
the  sixteenth  century,  France  owes  the  fashion  of  lace- 
wearing.  Under  the  Medici  influence  the  fashion  of 
wearing  costly  laces  of  gold,  silver,  and  thread  achieved 
its  greatest  popularity  ;  cut-work  or  point  coupe  was  also 
much  worn.  Henri  II.  of  France  invented  the  ruff 
to  hide  a  scar  on  his  neck,  and  the  fashion  spread  for 
these  lace-trimmed  ornaments;  the  making  of  lacis  or 
darned  netting  was  the  favourite  employment  of  the 
court  ladies. 

When  Marie  de'  Medicis,  Richelieu  and  Louis  XIII. 
passed  away,  the  courtiers  of  the  Regency  under  Anne  of 
Austria  vied  with  each  other  in  extravagance.  Colbert, 
coming  into  power,  saw  in  the  taste  for  lace  a  possible 
source  of  revenue  to  the  country.  He  set  up  factories  at 
L'Onray  and  other  places  ;  subsidised  the  industry  ;  got 
the  best  workers  over  from  Florence  to  teach  the  French 
lace-workers  the  Venetian  method  and  stitches ;  and 
succeeded  in  preparing  for  the  king  and  the  court  such 
Points  de  France  as  reconciled  the  gallants  of  the  royal 
circle  to  the  new  rule  that  no  other  lace  should  appear  at 
court  except  that  made  in  France.  Then  the  lovely 
Alen9on  fabric  was  evolved;  and  Argentan,  another 
town  in  the  department  of  the  Orne,  also  became  cele- 
brated as  a  lace-making  centre.  Establishments  were  also 
founded  at  Sedan,  Loudan,  Chateau-Thierry,  Rheims, 
Arras,  and  elsewhere.  Valenciennes  became  celebrated 
for  its  bobbin  laces  ;  Lille  and  Normandy  bobbin  laces  were  also  of  commercial 
value.  At  the  present  day  Alen£on  lace  is  made  chiefly  at  Burano. 

Argentan  lace  became  almost  extinct  at  the  time  of  the  Revolution,  when  all 
the  lace  industry  suffered.  Black  and  white  silk  blonde  laces,  extensively  made 
and  exported  during  the  eighteenth  century,  are  still  worked  at  Bayeux,  Caen,  and 
Chantilly.  At  Mirecourt  the  Lille  lace  is  still  made ;  while  near  Paris,  Point  de 
Paris,  a  guipure  lace,  and  Point  d'Espagne  are  made.  In  Normandy  Valenciennes 
lace  is  still  a  flourishing  industry,  while  Dieppe  and  Havre  are  known  for  their 


Chain  Pattern  of  Point  d' Alen- 
<;on,  2^  inches  wide,  with 
various  grounds  and  fill- 
ings ;  eighteenth  century. 


A    DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


'57 


French  Bobbin-made  Lace  (Valenciennes),  \\  inches  wide  ;  late  seventeenth  century. 

Petit s  Poussins,  Ave  Maria,  and  Dentelle  a  la  Vierge.     Full  descriptions  of  these 
laces  are  given  under  their  various  headings. 

Frisure. 

This  will  be  found  described  under  Bullion  Lace. 

Frivolite. 

The  French  term  for  Tatting. 

Genoa  Laces. 

Genoa  was  the  first  to  imitate  the  ancient  gold  laces  of  Cyprus  ;  this  was  at 
the  end  of  the  fourteenth  or  the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century.  Venice  and 
Milan  followed  the  example  of  Genoa,  and  these  three  Italian  towns  produced 
silver  and  gold  laces  made  of  drawn  wire.  Milan  was  the  last  to  give  up  this  art ; 
but  by  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century  even  at  this  city  the  manufacture  was 
extinct.  Genoa  lace  is  mentioned  in  the  great  wardrobe  accounts  of  Queen 
Elizabeth  ;  it  appears  then  to  have  been  made  entirely  of  silk.  Point  de  Genes  is 
enumerated  amongst  the  effects  of  Mane  de'  Medicis  seventy  years  later;  but  it 
was  not  until  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century  that  the  points  of  Genoa  were  in 
general  use  throughout  Europe.  The  Sumptuary  laws  of  the  Genoese  Republic 
forbade  the  wearing  of  gold  and  silver  lace  without  the  city  walls,  but  home-made 
point  was  allowed.  In  1770,  the  peasant  women  still  wore  aprons  edged  with  point 
lace.  At  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century  the  industry  was  almost  extinct, 
but  that  of  Macrame  or  knotted  lace-making  had  revived.  The  seventeenth 
century  was  the  most  flourishing  time  for  the  lace  trade  at  Genoa  :  then  both 
needle-point  and  bobbin  laces  made  in  the  town  were  highly  esteemed  all  over 
Europe,  and  were  a  most  important  article  of  trade.  It  was,  however,  the  bobbin 
work  a  piombini  which  was  the  most  valuable  ;  handkerchiefs,  collarettes,  aprons 
and  fichus  were  more  worn  than  lace  by  the  yard,  such  piece  laces  were  the 
Genoese  speciality  par  excellence.  In  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries 
Genoa  was  the  centre  of  the  bobbin  lace  industry,  as  Venice  was  that  of  the  needle- 
point varieties. 

The  chief  lace  industry  was  situated  at  Santa  Margherita  and  Rapolla.  Many 
votive  offerings  of  lace  are  mentioned  in  the  archives  of  the  Churches  of  Santa 
Margherita. 

When  blonde  lace  became  fashionable,  an  imitation  of  Chantilly  in  black  lace 
was  made  with  the  bobbins  ;  later,  about  1840,  guipures  for  France  were  made — 
these  are  now  the  chief  products  of  Genoa  for  exportation. 


i58 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


The  Genoa  lace  made  at  Albissola,  near  Savona,  was  black  or  white,  silk  or 
thread  ;  much  of  this  was  exported  to  Spam.  Enormous  cushions  were  used  in  its 
making,  as  many  as  four  women  sitting  at  one  pillow  and  manipulating  sixty  dozen 
bobbins.  This  is  work  frequently  undertaken  by  poor  gentlewomen.  Some  fine 
laces  made  at  Albissola  were  bought  by  lace  merchants  of  Milan  for  use  at  the 
coronation  of  Napoleon  ;  since  then,  however,  the  lace  trade  at  Albissola  has 
declined,  and  it  is  now  extinct.  Another  kind  of  lace  made  at  one  time  in  the 


Genoese  Plaited  Lace,  3  inches  wide ;   sixteenth  century. 


district  was  the  Aloe  lace,  Fino  d'Erbe  Spada  ;  one  of  the  threads  of  the  plant  was 
twisted  into  a  lace- work  of  the  natural  cream  colour,  and  some  of  it  was  dyed  black 
before  working.  This  lace,  like  the  Aloe  lace  of  Barcelona,  will  not  bear  washing, 
as  it  becomes  mucilaginous. 

At  the  Albergo  de  Poveri,  at  Genoa,  an  ingenious  work  called  Macram6 
lace  is  made.  This  handicraft  is  also  taught  in  many  of  the  schools  on  the 
Riviera,  and  carried  to  great  perfection  at  Chiavari.  It  consists  in  the  skilful 
knotting  together  of  long  threads  into  intricate  designs.  It  was  generally 
used  to  ornament  towels  when  originally  long  fringes  of  the  huckaback  were 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


159 


left  at  the  ends  all  ready  for  knotting  into  geometrical  designs.  This  work 
is  frequently  used  for  Church  purposes,  and  Macrame  always  forms  an 
important  part  in  the  trousseau  of  a  Genoese  lady.  A  great  deal  of  this 
work  is  exported. 

At  the  present  day  a  kind  of  guipure  is  worked  at  Genoa,  the  lace-making 
industry  employing  about  two  thousand  women.  This  lace  is  exported  chiefly 
to  South  America,  especially  to  La  Plata.  It  is  also  made  in  the  villages  near 
Como. 

German  Laces. 

In  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century  Barbara  Uttmann,  a  burgher's  daughter 
of  Nuremberg,  improved  upon  the  coarse  networks  of  the  Saxony  Hartz  Mountains, 
and  introduced  into  Germany  the  making 
of  pillow  lace — an  art  she  had  learnt  from 
a  Brabant  Protestant,  expatriated  by  the 
cruelties  of  the  Duke  of  Alva.  In  1561 
she  set  up  her  own  factory  at  Annaberg, 
and  the  industry  soon  spread  from  the 
Bavarian  frontier  into  the  surrounding 
country,  until,  at  her  death,  in  1575,  30,000 
persons  were  employed.  On  her  tomb  in 
the  churchyard  of  Annaberg  is  inscribed — 
"  Here  lies  Barbara  Uttmann,  died  i4th 
January,  1575,  whose  invention  of  lace  in 
the  year  1561  made  her  the  benefactress 
of  the  Hartz  Mountains."  These  words 
give  an  erroneous  impression.  Frau  Utt- 
mann introduced  pillow  lace  into  Germany  : 
she  did  not  invent  lace.  Much  Treillis 
d'Allemagne  was  sold  in  the  Paris  shops  in 
the  seventeenth  century.  French  refugees 
spread  over  Germany,  settled  in  Dresden, 
and  still  further  improved  the  lace-making 
methods. 

At  one  time  Saxony  point  was  made 
in  imitation  of  old  Brussels,  and  this  is 
extremely  costly.  Maltese  pillow  lace  is 
also  made  in  Dresden.  In  Northern 
Germany  the  manufacture  of  lace  was 
much  stimulated  by  the  Act  of  Revocation 
of  Louis  XIV.,  which  alienated  so  many 
of  the  most  skilful  workers  in  France. 
Hamburg  received  the  refugees  with  open  Modern  Saxony  Bobbin-made  Lace. 

arms,  and   benefited  by  her   hospitality    to 

such  an  extent  that  gold  and  silver  lace  was  for  long  known  as  Hamburg  Point. 
Other  laces  were   extensively  made,  and  continue   to   be  so.      Miss    Knight,  in 


i6o 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


her    autobiography,    says : — "  At    Hamburg,   just   before   we    embarked,    Nelson 
purchased  a  magnificent  lace  trimming  for  Lady  Nelson,  and  a  black  lace  cloak 

for  another  lady,  who,  he  said,  had  been 
very  attentive  to  his  wife  during  his 
absence." 

Settlements  of  lace-workers  carried  on 
their  craft  at  Potsdam,  where  Frederick 
William,  Elector  of  Brandenburg,  wisely 
anxious  to  attract  them,  had  issued  an 
edict  in  their  favour.  In  Berlin  also 
factories  were  opened,  though  none  had 
been  there  previously,  and  France  was  soon 
buying  from  Germany  the  lace  made  by  the 
hands  of  her  own  exiled  workmen. 

Hanover,  Leipsic,  Anspach,  Elberfeld, 
and  the  Erzgebirge  district,  both  on  the 
Saxon  and  on  the  Bohemian  side,  also  pro- 
fited by  the  industry  brought  by  the  refu- 
gees. All  these  fabrics  were,  as  it  were, 
offshoots  of  the  Alenson  trade.  In  his 
pictures  of  German  life  in  the  fifteenth, 
sixteenth,  and  seventeenth  centuries,  Gustaf 
Freytag  says,  "  Dandyism  began  in  Ger- 
many in  1626,  when  the  women  first  wore 
silver,  which  appeared  very  remarkable, 
and  at  last,  indeed,  white  lace."  The  new 
fashion  soon  caught  on,  and  soon  the  lace 
equipages  de  bain  were  as  rich  as  those  of 
Versailles,  and  the  love  of  dress  had  taken 
such  a  hold  on  even  the  student  class  that 
Bishop  Douglas,  in  1748,  says  that  Leipsic 
students  think  it  more  honourable  to  beg 
with  a  sword  by  their  side  than  to  gain  a 
livelihood.  "  I  have  often,"  he  says,  "  given 
a  few  groschen  to  one  finely  powdered  and 
dressed  with  sword  and  lace  ruffles." 

Of  the  laces  of  Southern  Germany  little 
is  known,  but  in  1600  specimens  of  Nurem- 
berg lace  were  made  by  a  certain  Jungfrau 
Pickleman.  These  pieces  are  of  a  Venetian 
character,  and  are  evidently  worked  from 
the  pattern  books  of  Vecellio.  Several 
pattern  books  were  published  in  Germany. 
That  printed  at  Augsburg  by  John  Schwartzenberg  in  1534  is  the  most  important. 
That  printed  at  Cologne  in  1527  is  the  earliest  dated  pattern  book  known.  A  small 
quantity  of  Valenciennes  and  other  pillow  lace  is  made  now  in  Germany.  Torchon 


c 


o  So 


Si  2 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


161 


is  made  in  Saxony,  the  special  make  being  so  strong  that  it  is  sometimes  called 
"  Eternelle." 

Ghent  Lace. 

The  lace  schools  of  Ghent  are  celebrated,  and  a  very  large  number  of  the 
female  population  is  actively  employed  in  lace-making.  Savary,  in  the  eighteenth 
century,  describes  the  bobbin-made  Valenciennes  such  as  were  called  fausses 
Valenciennes,  on  account  of  their  not  being  made  in  France,  as  being  "less  tightly 
made,  a  little  less  durable,  and  a  little  less  expensive  "  than  the  French-made 
Valenciennes.  The  lace  was  largely  exported  to  Holland  and  England,  to  Spain 
and  her  colonies.  The  West  Indian  colonists  delighted  in  Flemish  lace  and  fringes. 
It  will  be  remembered  that  Robinson  Crusoe,  when  at  Lisbon,  sends  "  some 
Flanders  lace  of  a  good  value  as  a  present  to  the  wife  and  daughter  of  his  partner 
in  the  Brazils." 

Narrow  widths  of  lace  are,  as  a  rule,  executed  at  Ghent.  The  ground  is 
quickly  made,  as  fewer  twists  are  given  to  the  bobbins  than  in  Valenciennes 
ground  made  elsewhere. 

Gold  Lace. 

The  twisting  of  gold  and  silver  thread  of  metal  wire  into  patterns  was  the 
earliest  form  of  lace-making.  Gold  thread  work  was  known  to  the  Romans. 
Gold  lace  has  been  found  dating  from  pre-historic  times.  Egyptian  mummy  cases 
have  enclosed  fragments  of  it ;  Nero  the  emperor  wore  a  net  or  head-covering  of 
gold  threads.  In  Anglo-Saxon  times  gold  thread  was  not  only  used  in  the  elaborate 
embroidery  of  the  age,  but  also  for  weaving  ecclesiastical  and  other  vestments.  In 
the  fifteenth  century  occurs  the  first  mention  of  the  celebrated  gold  thread  from 
Cyprus  ;  then  comes  the  "  fringe  of  gold  of  Venys"  ;  and  later  the  gold  and  silver 
threads  of  Genoa  and  Lucca  are  written  of.  Early  Italian 
and  Flemish  paintings  of  the  fifteenth  century  show  open- 
work borders  of  gold  threads,  twisted  and  plaited  together,  o 
Sumptuary  laws  were  constantly  made  in  the  countries  £ 
where  the  wearing  of  gold  and  silver  thread  laces  were  § 
fashionable  ;  so  that  in  its  manufacture  and  import  is  largely  «> 
involved  the  early  history  of  the  civilised  world.  It  was  -jf 
greatly  owing  to  such  laces  that  the  beautiful  thread  laces  ^ 
of  the  present  day  were  evolved,  for,  gold  and  silver  thread  g 
lace-making  becoming  an  unprofitable  industry  on  account 
of  edicts  forbidding  the  wearing  of  the  precious  metals,  £• 
the  lace-makers  worked  out  their  patterns  in  flax  thread  ;  | 
and  when  they  found  how  much  easier  of  manipulation  ~ 
was  the  substituted  material,  more  intricate  designs  were  ^ 
attempted,  graceful  stitches  invented,  and  so  the  flax  thread  I" 
lace  was  gradually  evolved,  and  has  grown  in  delicacy  and  E? 
loveliness.  § 

The  variety  of  pattern  worked  in  the  stiff  metal  thread  2 
was  never  considerable,  the  geometric  designs  being  the  ^ 
most  complicated  that  were  attempted.  The  zenith  of 


1 62 


HISTORY     OF    H'AND-MADE    LACE. 


success  for  gold  and  silver  thread  lace,  or  Point  d'Espagne,  was  attained  in 
the  latter  half  of  the  seventeenth  century.  Though  called  Spanish  lace,  there 
was  far  more  of  it  made  at  Aurillac  and  Lyons  than  in  Spain.  The  Jews  expelled 
from  Spain  in  the  fourteenth  century  had  brought  their  handicraft  with  them, 
and  continued  the  work  chiefly  in  France.  Paris  was  also  noted  for  its  gold  and 
silver  laces.  Later  on  gold  threads  were  largely  manufactured  at  Madrid,  but 
this  was  chiefly  in  connection  with  the  manufacture  of  tapestry. 

In  Sweden  gold  lace  was  made  in  the  fifteenth  century,  and  in  Russia  it  was 
the  first  kind  attempted. 

The  gold  and  silver  lace  of  the  present  day  would  be  more  correctly  called 
braid  or  galoon  ;  it  is  made  by  machinery,  and  is  used  for  uniforms,  theatrical 
purposes,  and  liveries.  It  is  usually  made  of  a  silken  warp  thread,  or  silk  and 
cotton  combined,  the  weft  being  of  silk  covered  with  gold  or  silver-gilt. 

Grammont  Lace. 

A  bobbin  lace  once  made  in  the  town  of  Grammont.  It  is  coarse  and  cheap, 
and  is  little  known  beyond  the  neighbourhood  where  it  was  made.  Recently 
black  silk  lace  resembling  Chantilly  blonde  has  been  made  at  Grammont  in  large 
quantities.  The  ground  is  coarser  and  the  patterns  are  not  so  well  defined  as  in 
the  Chantilly 
lace,  nor  is  the 
silk  so  true  a 
black.  However, 
large  pieces  are 
made  for  dress 
skirts,  flounces, 
and  shawls,  and 
exported  to 
America. 

Greek  Point. 

This  is  one 
of  the  earliest 
forms  of  needle- 
made  lace  ;  it  is 
also  called 
Roman  Lace, 
Reticella,  and 
sometimes  Vene- 
tian Guipure.  It 
is  now  made  in 
Italy  of  a  finer 
kind  than  the 
fabric  of  the 
same  name  in 

the  Ionian  Isles. 

T*,         ,  ,  Reticella  or  Greek  Point  Lace,  recently  copied  from  a  piece  found  in  a 

The    designs     of  convent  at  Milan. 


A    DICTIONARY    OF    LACE.  163 

the  earliest  Greek  laces  were  all  geometrical,  the  oldest  being  usually  simple 
outlines  worked  over  cords  or  threads  left  after  others  had  been  drawn  or  cut. 
Next  in  date  came  the  patterns  which  had  the  outlines  further  ornamented  with 
half-circles,  triangles,  or  wheels;  later,  open-work  with  thick  stitches  was  produced. 
In  old  Greek  Point  coloured  silk  threads  were  used,  and  occasionally  gold  and 
silver  threads.  The  modern  Greek  Points  are  made  with  flax  thread  only.  The 
principle  places  of  manufacture  were  the  Ionian  Isles,  Zante,  Corfu,  Venice, 
Naples,  Rome,  Florence,  and  Milan.  Imitations  of  the  lace  were  also  made 
in  Spain,  France,  England,  and  Germany,  the  designs  being  copied  from  Vinciola's 
collection  of  lace  patterns,  published  in  1587. 

Grounded  Venetian    Point. 

A  name  sometimes  given  to  Burano  Point,  which  has  a  hand-made  needle-point 
net  ground  or  reseau.  It  was  first  made  when  the  Alencon  lace  had  set  up  a 
demand  for  a  light  and  transparent  lace. 

Queuse  Lace. 

A  pillow  lace  resembling  Torchon,  which  was  manufactured  in  France  before 
the  time  of  Colbert,  and  also  during  the  seventeenth  century.  It  was  known  as 
Beggar's  Lace  on  account  of  its  coarse  quality. 

Guipure. 

The  old  Guipure  of  the  Middle  Ages  was  very  different  from  the  "  Guipure 
d'Art "  of  the  present  day.  The  word  Guipure  is  now  indiscriminately  applied 
to  all  large-patterned  laces  with  coarse  grounds,  which  require  no  "brides" 
or  bars,  and  no  delicate  groundings  ;  but  formerly  it  was  the  name  for  a  kind  of 
gold  and  silver  thread  lace. 

Guipure  was  also  the  name  given  to  a  sort  of  passement  or  gimp  made  with 
"  cartisane  "  and  twisted  silk.  The  word  is  derived  from  guipe,  a  thick  cord 
round  which  silk  is  rolled.  Carlisane  is  a  little  strip  of  thin  parchment  or  vellum, 
which  was  covered  with  silk,  gold,  or  silver  thread. 

The  work  of  Guipure  lace-making  was  done  either  with  bobbins  or  with  a 
needle,  the  stiff  lines  which  formed  the  pattern  being  held  together  by  stitches 
worked  with  a  needle  or  by  the  plaiting  of  the  bobbins.  From  its  costliness, 
being  made  only  in  gold,  silver,  or  coloured  silk,  Guipure  was  only  worn  by  the 
rich,  or  on  the  livery  of  the  King's  servants.  In  the  reign  of  Henri  III.,  the 
headgear  of  his  pages  was  covered  with  Guipures  and  passements,  the  colours 
borne  in  the  armorial  bearings  being  used.  Large  quantities  of  narrow  Guipures 
were  made  in  the  environs  of  Paris  during  the  first  half  of  the  eighteenth  century. 
Lately  the  vellum,  or  cartisane  padding,  has  been  replaced  with  cotton  thread 
called  Cannetille,  as  it  was  found  that  the  card  stiffening  was  not  sufficiently 
durable :  it  shrivelled  up  with  heat,  was  reduced  to  pulp  by  damp,  and  would  not 
wash. 

The  word  Guipure  is  not  found  in  inventories  and  records  of  English  lace : 
Parchment  Lace  and  Dentelle  a  Cartisan  are,  however,  frequently  met  with.  It 
is  difficult  to  decide  when  the  word  Guipure  was  first  transferred  to  thread 
passements  and  lace  made  with  tape,  rather  than  with  rolled  cord  outline,  but  there 

M  2 


Border  of  French  Gimp  or  Guipure,  6  inches  wide,  with  pattern  in  red,  white, 
and  blue  silk  gimps ;    seventeenth  century. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


165 


are  plenty  of  examples  of  Louis  XIV.  design  to  show  that  thread  Guipures  were 
of  very  old  date.  The  finest  were  produced  in  Flanders  and  Italy,  and  were 
usually  distinguished  by  bold  and  flowing  patterns.  The  groundwork  was  a 
coarse  reseau,  or  mesh,  called  "  round  ground,"  from  the  shape  of  the  interstices. 
Some  of  the  patterns  were  united  by  brides  ;  this  is  especially  noticeable  with 


Border  of  tape  Lace  a  Brides,  13|  inches  wide.     Both  bars  and  fillings  are  of  needle-point. 

Eighteenth  century. 

the  Tape  Guipures,  the  outlines  of  the   design  being   formed   by   a    bobbin,  or 
hand-made  tape.     The  filling  was  frequently  put  in  with  the  needle. 

In  1620,  Guipure,  together  with  rose  or  raised  needle-point  lace,  and  Genoa 
point,  were  in  great  demand,  so  that  all  the  lace  factories  began  to  supply  them 
in  a  greater  or  lesser  degree,  with  the  exception  only  of  Belgium.  That  country 
did  not  follow  the  general  fashion  in  tape  lace-making,  but  created  a  new  and 


166  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

special  type  which  has  always  remained  the  characteristic  lace  of  Flanders  with 
its  close  workmanship  and  exquisite  fineness  of  thread. 

The  Guipure  of  the  seventeenth  century  was  extremely  ornamental,  the  parts 
of  the  design  in  tape  being  united,  and  the  openings  filled  with  ornamental 
stitches.  On  the  commencement  of  the  fashion  of  the  falling  collar,  the  make 
of  Guipure  became  heavier  on  account  of  the  desirability  that  the  fabric  should 
hang  from  the  neck  rather  than  stand  out  as  the  edging  of  the  ruff,  which  had 
hitherto  required  lightness  and  delicacy  rather  than  weight.  The  additional 
weight  was  given  by  means  of  a  kind  of  Point  d'Esprit,  of  grain-shaped 
enrichment. 

When  the  word  Guipure  is  used  for  modern  Honiton  Maltese  lace,  and  its 
Buckingham  imitations,  or  for  the  coarse  raised  points  of  Venice,  it  is  misapplied. 
Lace  called  Guipure  d'Art,  Filet  Erode,  and  Filet  Guipure,  is  the  modern  survival 
of  the  Opus  Filatorium,  or  Darned  Netting  (under  which  last  heading  it  is 
described). 

The  modern  tape  Guipures  were  first  made  in  Italy,  Genoa  leading  the 
industry  ;  the  designs  are  simple,  and  have  been  brought  to  great  perfection  in 
France  and  Venice.  The  black  modern  guipure  is  very  popular,  as  being  specially 
adaptable  to  the  exigencies  of  modern  fashion.  This  lace  in  black  silk  is  now  the 
chief  manufacture  of  Le  Puy,  in  France. 

Guipure  d'Art. 

This  is  described  under  Darned  Netting. 

Guipures  de  Flandre. 

The  name  given  to.old  Flemish  laces  made  with  bobbins,  to  distinguish  them 
from  old  needle-point  Flanders  lace. 
Hainault  Lace. 

Brussels  lace  was  made  in  Hainault  during  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth 
centuries,  also  a  Valenciennes  lace  at  Binche,  a  town  of  Hainault.     These  are 
described  under  their  various  headings. 
Hamburg  Point. 

A  point  lace  made  at  Hamburg  by  the  French  Protestant  refugees  after  the 
revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes.     It  is  described  under  German  Lace. 
Holesom. 

A  local  name  for  Swedish  Lace. 
Hollie  or  Holy  Lace. 

A  needle-point  lace  worked  in  the   Middle  Ages,  the  subject  of  the  pattern 
being   taken    from     Holy    Writ.    ^^^^^^^^^^BHMnanH^^MIMHB^^H 
The  name  "  Hollie''  is  a  corrup- 
tion of  Holy  Point,  and  is  some- 
times used  to  denote  any  Church 
laces,  whether  formed  of  drawn 
or  cut  work,  darned  netting  (the 
true  Hollie  Lace)  or  needle-point, 
provided      the      subject      is      a 

Hollie  or  Holy  Point,  formerly  made  for  Church  use  only,  but 
c  ne.  gince  tlie  Reformation  used  for  lay  purposes ;  eighteenth  century. 


A    DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


167 


bobbins,  and  then  applying  them 


The  wearing  of  Hollie  Point  was  not  thought  of  till  after  the  Reformation, 
when  the  Puritans  used,  for  lay  purposes,  many  things  that  had  belonged  hitherto 
exclusively  to  the  Church.  The  bearing  cloth  or  mantle,  used  to  cover  a  child 
when  carried  lo  its  christening,  together  with  its  christening  cap  and  shirt,  with 
bib  and  mittens,  which  formed  the  christening  suit,  were  frequently  of  Hollie  Point. 
Such  subjects  as  the  "  Tree  of  Knowledge,"  "  The  Holy  Dove,"  or  "  The  Flower 
Pot  and  Lily  of  the  Annunciation,"  were  the  favourites.  (In  the  chapter  on 
"Ecclesiastical  Lace"  and  under  Church  Lace  further  details  are  given.) 

Honiton  Application. 

This  lace  is  formed  by  making  the  sprays  with 
on  to  a  net  ground,  made  either  with  the  needle, 
with  bobbins,  or  by  machinery.  It  is  the  hand- 
made ground  which  makes  the  lace  so  valuable, 
in  consequence  of  the  length  of  time  required  in 
its  making,  and  the  fineness,  and  consequent 
dearness,  of  the  Antwerp  thread  used,  It  was  of 
this  kind  that  our  Queen's  lace  wedding  veil  and 
dress  were  made.  The  order  was  executed  by 
Miss  Jane  Bidney,  who  placed  the  different 
sprays  in  the  hands  of  workers  in  and  around 
the  little  village  of  Beer,  in  South  Devon.  The 
lace  cost  £1,000.  The  patterns  were  immedi- 
ately destroyed  when  the  lace  was  complete,  but 
fragments  of  some  of  the  sprigs  are  treasured 
in  cottages  here  and  there  in  the  neighbour- 
hood. In  examining  such  specimens  the  work 
is  seen  to  be  of  great  beauty. 

Honiton  Application  is  chiefly  made  now  by 
working  the  sprays  on  the  pillow,  and  applying 
them  on  to  a  machine-made  net.  (Further 
details  are  given  under  Honiton  Lace.) 


Honiton  Bobbin-made  Lace  Daisy. 
The  centre  stitch,  called  Dia- 
mond Plaitings,  is  made  after 
the  other  parts  of  the  spray 
have  been  worked.  The  leaves 
are  in  cloth  stitch  and  half 
stitch  with  pearl  edge ;  the 
stem  is  in  stem  stitch  with  plain 
pearl  edge.  Nineteenth  century. 


Honiton  Crochet. 

This  is  referred  to  under  Crochet  and   Irish  Point   Crochet. 

Honiton  Lace. 

Honiton  has  been  the  centre  of  the  lace  trade  since  the  days  of  Queen 
Elizabeth,  when  coarse  bobbin  or  bone  laces  were  made — plaited  laces  of  silk,  gold 
or  silver  threads,  like  the  Italian  and  Greek  Reticellas.  The  lace-makers  were 
reinforced  by  the  Flemings  who  took  refuge  in  Devonshire  from  religious  persecu- 
tion during  the  sixteenth  century,  and  traces  are  still  to  be  found  of  Flemish  names 
amongst  the  lace-making  families,  such  as  Stocker,  Gerard,  Murch,  Kettel,  Groot, 
Speller,  and  Trump. 

In  the  seventeenth  century  the  Honiton  workers  tried  to  imitate  Brussels  lace, 
which  was  then  popular,  but  the  effort  was  not  altogether  successful,  as  the  thread 
used  was  inferior. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


169 


A  great  fire  at  Honiton  in  1756  caused  much  distress'amongst  the  lace-makers. 
Just  before  this  calamity,  in  the  "  Complete  System  of  Geography,"  by  Emanuel 
Bowen,  it  is  said  of  Honiton :  — "  The  people  are  chiefly  employed  in  the  manufactory 


of  lace,  the  broadest  sort  that  is  made  in  England,  of  which  great  quantities  are  sent 
to  London."  At  this  time  Devonshire  lace  is  sometimes  called  Bath  Brussels  lace. 
It  is  owing  to  its  sprigs  that  Honiton  has  become  famous.  They  were,  and 
still  are,  made  separately — first  worked  with  bobbins,  and  afterwards  sewn,  or 
appliqued,  on  to  the  ground.  The  making  of  the  plain  pillow  ground  was  an 
important  branch  of  the  industry,  but  has  now  almost  died  out.  In  the  last 


1 70  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

4 

century  the  hand-made  net  was  very  expensive,  and  was  made  of  the  finest 
thread  from  Antwerp:  in  1790  this  cost  ^"70  per  pound,  sometimes  more.  At 
that  time  the  mode  of  payment  was  decidedly  primitive  :  the  lace  ground  was 
spread  out  on  the  counter,  and  the  cottage  worker  covered  it  with  shillings 
from  the  till  of  the  shopman.  As  many  coins  as  she  could  place  on  her  work 
she  took  away  with  her  as  wages  for  her  labour.  '  It  is  no  wonder  that  a 
Honiton  lace  veil,  before  the  invention  of  machine-made  net,  often  cost  a  hundred 
guineas.  Heathcoat's  invention  of  a  machine  for  making  net  dealt  a  crushing 
blow  to  the  pillow-made  net  workers.  The  result  is  easily  guessed.  After 
suffering  great  depression  for  twenty  years,  the  art  of  hand-made  net  became 
nearly  extinct,  and  when  an  order  for  a  marriage  veil  of  hand-made  net  was  given, 
it  was  with  the  greatest  difficulty  that  workers  could  be  found  to  make  it.  The  net 
alone  for  such  a  veil  would  cost  ^"30.  There  was  a  curious  wave  of  careless  design- 
ing and  inartistic  method  during  the  time  of  this  depression,  and  ugly  patterns  show 
"  turkey  tails,"  "  frying  pans,"  and  hearts.  Not  a  leaf,  nor  a  flower,  was  copied 
from  nature.  At  last  a  petition  was  sent  to  Queen  Adelaide  on  behalf  of  the 
distressed  lace- workers,  and  she  ordered  a  dress  to  be  made  of  Honiton  sprigs,  on 
machine-made  net,  so  that  both  industries  should  feel  the  benefit  of  her  patronage. 
The  wedding  dress  of  Queen  Victoria,  also  made  in  Devonshire,  is  described 
under  Honiton  Application  ;  those  of  the  Princess  Royal,  Princess  Alice,  and  the 
Princess  of  Wales  were  all  of  Honiton  bobbin-made  sprigs,  mounted  on  machine- 
made  net ;  the  patterns  were  of  the  national  flowers,  the  Prince  of  Wales'  feathers 
being  used  on  that  of  the  Danish  Princess. 

Honiton  lace  sprigs  are  now  used  for  the  modern  Honiton  Guipure.  The 
sprigs  are  made  on  the  pillow  with  bobbins,  sewn  on  to  the  blue  paper,  and  then 
united  by  cut-work  or  purlings,  or  else  joined  with  the  needle  by  such  stitches  as 
reseau,  cut-work,  or  buttonhole  stitch  ;  the  purling  is  made  by  the  yard.  The 
Honiton  lace  trade  is  now  improving  slightly,  owing  to  the  revival  of  interest  in  all 
hand-made  laces.  Frequent  industrial  exhibitions,  prizes  to  skilful  and  artistic 
workers,  together  with  a  return  to  nature  for  inspiration  in  pattern-designing,  have 
raised  the  standard  with  partial  success  ;  but  the  isolated  efforts  of  a  few  individuals 
are  not  sufficient  to  bring  about  a  steady  and  persistent  revival  in  the  great  and 
important  industry  of  Honiton  lace-making.  While  the  demands  of  fashion  are 
ignored,  and  inferior  designs  worked,  the  "  trade,"  which  is  such  an  important 
factor  in  the  success  of  any  lace  revival,  will  not  trouble  to  give  orders ;  and 

though  the  stitches  in  themselves  may  be  beauti- 
ful, the  lace  is  frequently  but  an  example  of 
misdirected  talent  and  industry,  on  account  of 
the  ugly,  heavy  patterns,  clumsy  arabesques,  and 
weak  imitations  of  natural  flowers,  which  form 
the  chief  designs  of  the  present  day. 

A  speciality  of  Honiton  lace,  unknown  in 
England  until  1874,  is  that  called  Devonia  lace. 
Its  characteristic  is  the  raising  in  relief  of  the 

Devonia  Bobbin-made  Lace  Flower         inner  petals  of  the  flowers,  butterflies'  wings,  or 

with  petals  in  relief ;  latter  half  of  ..ir  ••ii-          ±u  ,oi 

the  nineteenth  century.  other  ornamental   forms,  imitating    the   natural 


A    DICTIONARY    OF    LACE.  171 

objects  from  which  they  are  copied,  and  standing  out  from  the  ground.  This 
variety  was  known  in  Belgium  and  worked  there  for  several  years  before  the 
Honiton  workers  commenced  the  new  method.  (Further  details  are  given  under 
Devonshire  Lace.) 

Huguenot  Lace. 

An  imitation  lace- work  made  at  the  commencement  of  the  present  reign,  but 
now  obsolete.  Rosette-shaped  flowers  of  Mull  muslin  were  mounted  on  net ;  buds 
and  leaves  were  also  formed  of  the  muslin  combined  with  lace  stitches. 

Indian  Lace. 

It  is  strange  that  in  India,  a  country  remarkable  for  the  skill  and  patience 
shown  in  the  native  embroideries,  there  should  be  little  trace  of  the  art  of  lace- 
making.  A  simple  open  mesh  gauze,  embroidered  with  gold  or  silver,  is  all  that 
can  be  found  resembling  lace  amongst  the  gorgeous  collections  of  Indian  textiles  and 
needlework,  with  the  exception  of  a  kind  of  knot-work  made  with  a  continuous 
series  of  thick  buttonholes,  every  three  stitches  of  which  are  drawn  together  with  a 
loop.  The  whole  forms  a  massive  fabric  very  far  removed  from  the  lightness  and 
grace  of  Western  lace  work.  In  comparatively  recent  times  lace  has  been  made 
at  some  of  the  European  mission  schools,  of  which  the  best  known  are  those  of 
Travancore  and  Tinnevelli.  The  natives  show  considerable  aptitude  in  learning 
the  handicraft. 

Indian  Point  Lace  or  Indian  Work. 

Names  given  to  Drawn-work,  under  which  title  the  fabric  is  described. 

Irish  Laces. 

All  the  laces  produced  in  Ireland  are  copies  of  those  worked  in  other  countries: 
none  of  them  are  original,  and  it  is  only  within  the  last  fifty  years  that  lace-making 
has  become  an  industry  of  the  people.  It  is  now  made  at  Youghal,  New  Ross, 
Killarney,  Kinsale,  Clonakilty,  Waterford,  Monaghan,  and  other  places  in  Ireland. 
When  the  Irish  Rebellion  was  at  an  end,  a  friendly  exchange  of  fashions  set  in 
between  England  and  Ireland,  and  the  lace-trimmed  ruff  and  fall  of  Flanders  Point 
appeared  in  due  course  in  the  island.  At  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century  a 
desire  began  to  show  itself  to  patronise  the  productions  of  the  country.  Swift  com- 
posed a  prologue  to  a  play  to  be  acted  for  the  benefit  of  the  Irish  weavers,  in  which 
he  says:  "We'll  dress  in  manufactures  made  at  home."  In  1743  the  value  of 
the  bone  lace  made  by  the  children  in  the  workhouses  of  the  city  of  Dublin  amounted 
to  ^"164  143.  io|d.  "  In  consequence  of  this  success  the  Society  ordain  that 
^"34  2S.  6d.  be  given  to  the  Lady  Arabella  Denny  to  distribute  among  the  children 
for  their  encouragement  in  making  bone  lace."  In  1703  only  2,333  yards,  worth 
only  £116,  or  about  one  shilling  per  yard,  passed  through  the  Irish  custom  house. 
Ireland  received  her  needle-points  from  France  or  Flanders.  A  Mrs.  Rachel  Arm- 
strong, of  Co.  Kilkenny,  was  awarded  a  prize  of  £11  73.  6d.  for  having  caused  a 
considerable  quantity  of  bone  lace  to  be  made  by  girls  whom  she  instructed  and 
employed  in  the  work ;  and  Lady  Arabella  Denny,  the  good  genius  of  Irish  lace,  in 
1765  had  the  freedom  of  the  city  of  Dublin  conferred  upon  her  for  her  good  work. 
But  with  all  this  fostering  it  was  not  until  the  time  of  the  great  famine  (1846  to 


1 72 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


1848)  that  any  real  attempt  to  make  lace  a  general  production  commenced.  Then 
schools  were  opened  in  various  parts  of  the  country  by  the  exertions  of  patriotic 
ladies,  and,  assisted  by  Government,  reproduction  of  Brussels  Applique  was  com- 
menced at  the  Curragh  Schools.  Limerick  Lace,  Irish  Point,  Belfast,  and  fine 
crochet  reproductions  of  old  points  are  the  best-known  laces  of  Ireland;  and  other 
laces  have  been  made,  such  as  Irish  Guipure  or  Carrickmacross,  Point  Jesuit, 
Spanish,  Venetian  and  Rose  Point,  Pearl  Tatting,  Knotted  and  Lifted  Guipure, 
Black  and  White  Maltese,  silver,  black, 
and  white  blondes,  and  wire-ground 
Valenciennes. 

Irish  Point. 

This  lace  is  also  called  Curragh  lace. 
It  is  made  at  Youghal,  New  Ross,  Ken- 
mare,  Killarney,  Kinsale,  and  Waterford. 
It  was  Lady  de  Vere  who  taught  the 
mistress  of  the  school  to  make  applica- 
tion sprigs  in  the  Brussels  method,  and 
lent  her  own  Brussels  lace  as  patterns. 
The  lace  was  so  good  that  success  at 
once  attended  her  efforts.  Sometimes 
these  sprays  are  joined  with  corded  bars, 
which  attach  them  to  machine-made  net, 
the  foundation  being  cut  away  from 
beneath  the  sprig.  (Further  details  are 
given  under  Irish  Laces.) 

Irish  Point  Crochet. 

This  is  worked  in  imitation  of  Spanish 
and  Venetian  guipure  patterns.  It  is  also 
known  as  Honiton  Crochet. 

Isle  of  Man  Lace. 

Much  lace  of  all  kinds  was  conveyed 
into  England  under  the  name  of  Isle  of 
Man  Lace,  which  was  smuggled  over 
from  the  Continent  when  the  importation 
of  foreign  laces  to  this  country  was  for- 
bidden. During  the  eighteenth  century 
a  pillow-made  edging  like  a  coarse  Valen- 
ciennes was  made  on  the  island,  but 
the  industry  never  flourished,  and  it  is 
now  extinct. 

Isle  of  Wight  Lace. 

This  is  of  two  kinds:  (i)  Bobbin 
lace,  resembling  that  made  in  Wiltshire ; 
the  manufacture  is  now  extinct.  (2)  The 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE.  173 

second  kind  is  not  a  lace  at  all  in  the  true  sense  of  the  term,  as  it  is  machine- 
made  net,  upon  which  a  design  is  run  in  a  coarse  flax  thread,  the  pattern  being 
outlined,  and  fine  needle-point  stitches  afterwards  used  to  fill  in  the  design. 
Her  Majesty  the  Queen  at  one  time  wore  Isle  of  Wight  lace  for  her  cap-strings. 

Italian  Laces. 

The  laces  of  Italy  have  always  been,  and  still  are,  unrivalled  in  beauty. 
Exquisite  needle-point  laces  were  produced  as  early  as  the  fifteenth  century,  and 
the  art  was  universally  practised  in  the  convents  in  the  sixteenth  century.  Although 
lace  was  at  first  almost  exclusively  made  for  Church  purposes,  the  splendour  of  the 
Romish  ritual  encouraging  the 
art  to  a  great  extent,  yet  the 
rich  dress  of  the  sixteenth  cen- 
tury demanded  its  manufacture 
for  personal  adornment  also. 

The  earliest  forms  of  lace 
made  in  Italy,  as  in  the  rest  of 
Europe,  were  twisted  threads  of 
gold,  silver,  and  silk,  cut-work, 
darned  netting,  and  drawn-work, 

besides    the    knotted     laces     of 

Italian  Bobbin  Lace,  5t  inches  wide  ;  sixteenth  century. 
Genoa,     which     were     a     most 

important  article  of  trade.  The  Venetian  points  are  the  most  beautiful  and 
elaborate  laces  that  have  ever  been  made.  The  art  of  producing  such  work 
has  not  been  lost,  and  a  revival  is  taking  place  in  the  taste  for  fine  needle-point 
and  pillow  lace  which  is  enabling  the  lace-makers  of  Italy  to  show  that  the 
capacity  for  exquisitely  artistic  work  has  merely  lain  dormant,  but  is  not  extinct. 
The  beautiful  Point  de  Venise  was  created  at  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
in  order  to  supply  a  demand  for  some  novelty  when  lace-wearing  was  on  the 
increase,  and  was  sa  popular  that  enormous  quantities  were  exported  to  France 
and  other  countries  until  the  latter  half  of  the  seventeenth  century. 

The  laces  of  Milan  also  were  celebrated,  and,  with  those  of  Ragusa,  were  worn 
at  all  the  Courts  of  Europe.  The  decay  of  the  Italian  lace  industry  was  due  to  the 
clever  imitative  powers  of  the  French  people,  who,  after  being  taught  the  Venetian 
method  by  instructors  imported  from  Italy  by  Colbert,  in  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV., 
became  so  apt  at  learning  the  art  of  needle-point  lace-making,  that  they  no  longer 
needed  the  large  supply  formerly  drawn  from  Venice  ;  they  were,  in  fact,  able  to 
supply  not  only  themselves  but  other  European  nations  with  the  French  Point  de 
Venise,  called  Point  de  France,  and  many  other  varieties  which  they  evolved  from 
the  original  types. 

Descriptions  of  the  Italian  laces  are  given  under  their  various  headings. 
Jesuit  Lace. 

An   Irish  reproduction  of  Spanish  and    Venetian    lace  designs    executed   in 
crochet.     They  are  described  under  Irish  Laces. 
Knotted  Lace. 

A  variety  of  the  Ragusa  and  Reticella  Guipures,  known  in  Italy  as  Punto  a 


174 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Groppo.  The  word  groppo  signifies  a  knot  or  tie  which  is  a  characteristic  of  this 
lace,  it  being  formed  of  threads  knotted  together  like  the  fringes  of  Genoese 
Macrame. 

The  old  Ragusa  Guipure  was  chiefly  executed  in  gold  and  silver  threads.  It 
is  the  kind  of  lace  most 
resembling  the  Egyptian 
bordering  to  garments, 
and  was  first  produced 
at  Genoa  for  ecclesias- 
tical purposes.  Such 
lace  is  made  upon  a 
wooden  support  or 
pillow  with  twine,  cut 
into  short  lengths  and 
made  into  patterns  by 
being  tied  into  knots  at 
well-arranged  distances, 
with  the  fingers,  and 
without  the  aid  of 
bobbins  or  needle. 
Sometimes,  when  the 
pattern  is  finished,  the 
threads  are  allowed  to 
hang  down  to  form  a 
fringe ;  in  other  cases 
the  ends  are  worked  up  and  cut  off  so  that  there  is  no  fringe  edging. 

Knotted  lace  is  now  made  in  Calabria,  and  near  to  Rome,  the  countrywomen 
using  it  for  trimming  their  underdresses  and  ornamenting  the  linen  cloth  used  as  a 
head-covering  by  the  Roman  peasants. 
Lace. 

The  name  now  applied  to  ornamental  open-work  formed  of  threads  of  flax, 
cotton,  silk,  gold,  silver,  hair,  or  aloe  fibre.  Such  threads  are  either  looped,  plaited, 
or  twisted  by  means  of  a  needle,  by  small  wooden  implements  called  bobbins,  or  by 
machinery,  when  imitations  of  both  needle-point  and  bobbin  laces  are  produced. 
The  name  was  formerly  given  to  narrow  plaited  or  twisted  bands  for  uniting  two 
portions  of  a  garment  or  for  ornamenting  hats  and  caps.  The  boot-laces  of  the 
present  day  are  a  survival  of  this  form. 

Lacis. 

One  of  the  names  for  Darned  Netting,  under  which  heading  it  is  described. 

Lagetta. 

The  inner  bark  of  the  Lagetta  lintearia,  or  lace  bark  tree  of  Jamaica,  is 
separated  by  the  natives,  thin  layers  of  it  having  the  appearance  of  a  mesh  ground, 
and  bearing  some  resemblance  to  white  lace.  In  the  time  of  Charles  II.,  the 
governor  of  Jamaica  presented  to  His  Majesty  a  cravat  and  ruffles  of  Lagetta. 
At  the  Exhibition  of  1851,  a  dress  of  this  fibre  was  presented  to  the  Queen. 


Italian  Knotted  Lace,  5  inches  wide,  in  thread  of  unbleached  flax  ; 
sixteenth  century. 


A    DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


Lavoro  a  Groppi. 

Fine  net-work, 
with  knotted 
pattern. 

Lavoro  a  Maglia. 

Lacis,  or  net- 
work ground 
darned. 

Le  Puy  Laces. 

Le  Puy  is 
famous  as  being 
the  oldest  lace 
centre  in  France. 
For  more  than  two 
centuries  the 
women  of  Auvergne 
have  devoted  them- 
selves  to  lace- 
making  of  whatever 
special  kind  was 
known  and  fashion- 
able at  the  time. 
In  the  seventeenth 
century  the  indus- 
try received  a 
severe  blow  from 
the  S^u  m'p  t  u  a  r  y 

edicts  issued  by  the  Parliament  of  Toulouse,  which  forbade  the  inhabitants,  under 
penalty  of  a  heavy  fine,  to  wear  upon  their  clothes  any  lace,  either  of  gold  or 
silver,  fine  or  coarse.  The  extinction  of  the  industry  of  the  whole  province  was 
averted  by  means  of  the  energy  of  a  Jesuit  Father,  who  was  afterwards  canonised 
for  his  good  work,  and  has  since  been  considered  the  patron  saint  of  the  lace- 
makers,  the  edicts  being  revoked  through  his  exertions.  In  the  eighteenth 
century,  the  workers  were  much  distressed  by  severe  export  duties,  and  the 
manufacture  of  the  recently  introduced,  and  then  fashionable,  blondes  was 
advised  as  a  help  to  the  industry,  for  the  coarse  laces  of  Le  Puy,  which  had 
been  used  in  enormous  quantities  in  England,  Italy,  Spain,  Portugal,  and 
Germany,  were  no  longer  popular. 

Le  Puy  lace  is  now  most  popular.  Black  and  white  thread  and  silk 
guipures  are  chiefly  made,  and  blondes  of  every  kind,  much  variety  in  design 
being  shown  to  keep  pace  with  the  modern  variation  in  taste. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  Le  Puy  is  a  lace  centre.     Many  varieties  pro- 
duced in  the  Haute  Loire  district  are  known  as  Le  Puy  laces. 
Lie"ge  Lace. 

A  bobbin  lace  made  at  the  town  in   Hainault,    from  the   beginning  of  the 


Specimen  of  the  Inner  Bark  of  the  Lace  Bark  Tree,  Lngetta  lintearia 
(Jamaica),  5  inches  wide. 


176 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


seventeenth  century  until  the  end  of  the  eighteenth.  In  1802  the  French 
Commissioners  classed  this  lace  as  of  little  importance.  The  fabric  resem- 
bled the  manufacture  of  Binche  (under  which  heading  further  particulars  will 
be  found)  and  was  much  used  for  Church  purposes.  A  pattern  book  of  lace 
designs  was  published  at  Liege  by  Jean  de  Glen,  as  early  as  1597.  It  is 
sometimes  known  as  Dentelle  de  Liege,  and  was  made  both  in  fine  and  in 
coarse  threads. 

Lille  Lace. 

This  bobbin  lace  was  made  as  early  as  the  sixteenth  century,  the  period  when 
lace-making  became  an  important  industry  in  the  Netherlands,  of  which  country 
Lille  was  at  one  time  a  part.  In  1582,  the  work  of  the  Lille  lace-makers  is 
specially  described.  It  is 
identical  with  Arras  lace, 
both  having  special  grounds 
called  fond  simple,  made  by 
twisting  two  threads  round 
each  other  on  four  sides, 
and  the  remaining  two  sides 
of  the  hexagon  by  the  simple 
crossing  of  the  threads  over 
each  other. 

The  old  Lille  laces  have 
a  very  fine  and  clear  ground, 
and  the  pattern  is  delicate: 
these  characteristics  have 
always  made  them  favou- 
rites for  summer  wear. 
Straight  stiff  edges  are  found 
in  the  old  Lille  laces,  the 
designs  of  which  are  marked 
with  a  thick  thread.  These 
straight  edges  are,  however, 
no  longer  made,  the  Mechlin 
patterns  having  been 
adopted,  together  with  the 
seme,  or  powdering  of  dots, 
both  round  and  square. 

The  making  of  black 
lace  at  Lille  has  been  dis- 
continued. When  Lille  was 
transferred  to  France,  in  1668,  many  of  the  lace-makers  retired  to  Ghent,  but 
sufficient  remained  to  continue  the  industry.  Lille  laces  have  always  been 
favourites  in  England,  the  black  especially.  At  the  end  of  the  eighteenth 
century  it  was  computed  that  one-third  of  the  production  was  smuggled  into 
England. 


Old  Lille  Lace  (eighteenth  century)  made  on  the  pillow 
with  bobbins.  It  is  especially  admired  for  its  clear 
ground. 


A    DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


177 


Limerick    Lace. 

This  is  now  recovering  its  prestige,  which  was  lost  in  the  sixties  through 
the  emigration  to  America  of  many  of  the  best  lace-makers,  The  manufacture 
was  commenced  in  1829,  when  Charles  Walker,  a  man  who  had  been  educated 


Cut  Cambric  and  Needle-work,  called  "Lace,"  made  at  Limerick,  10  inches  wide; 

nineteenth  century. 


178  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

for  the  Church,  married  the  daughter  of  a  lace  manufacturer  in  London,  and  went 
over  to  Ireland,  taking  with  him  twenty-four  girls  as  teachers.  They  began  the 
industry  in  Limerick.  He  employed  travellers  all  over  the  United  Kingdom,  and 
many  people  of  note  gave  great  encouragement  to  the  manufacture.  The  fabric, 
which  is  rather  embroidery  than  lace,  in  the  strict  sense  of  the  term,  is  of  three 
varieties:  Tambour,  which  is  made  by  working  upon  machine-made  net  a  design 
in  chain  stitch;  Run,  in  which  lines  of  a  pattern  are  run  with  a  coarser  thread  upon 
the  net  ;  and  Applique,  in  which  cambric  or  net  is  laid  over  net,  the  design  being 
formed  by  overcasting  the  pattern,  and  the  background  being  then  cut  away  so 
that  the  foundation  shows  through  and  thickens  the  design. 

Limoges  Lace. 

A  guipure  made  at  Limoges.     Guipure  Lace  is  described  under  that  heading. 

Luneville  Lace. 

This  bobbin-made  lace,  well-known  in  the  seventeenth  century,  was,  together 
with  Mirecourt  and  other  laces,  made  in  Lorraine.  Its  manufacture  formed  almost 
the  sole  occupation  of  the  female  population  ;  it  was  made  with  hempen  thread, 
which  was  spun  at  Chalet-sur-Moselle.  At  this  stage  of  its  development  the  lace 
— a  coarse  guipure  — was  called  a  passement.  In  the  latter  half  of  the  seventeenth 
century  this  coarse  fabric  was  laid  aside  and  a  more  delicate  lace  produced — a 
kind  of  Mignonette  with  double  ground.  Lorraine  laces  are  sometimes  known  as 
the  Saint  Michel  laces,  from  the  town  of  that  name,  where  much  of  it  is  made. 
A  pattern  called  Point  de  Flandre  is  still  a  favourite,  and  laces  similar  to  those  of 
Lille  and  Arras  are  also  produced.  Application  flowers  like  those  of  Brussels  and 
Honiton  are  made,  and  the  Lorraine  lace  has  great  advantage  over  the  former 
kind  in  that  the  sprigs  come  clean  and  white  from  the  hands  of  the  workers,  and 
no  bleaching  with  lead  is  required.  Luneville  and  other  laces  made  in  Lorraine 
are  largely  exported  to  America,  England,  and  the  East  Indies  at  the  present 
time.  There  were  factories  where  lace  of  the  same  kind  was  made  at  Dijon, 
Auxerre,  Lyons,  St.  Etienne,  He  de  France,  Rheims,  and  Sedan ;  others  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Paris,  such  as  St.  Denis,  Montmorency,  Villier-le-Bel,  and 
Groslait. 
Lyme  Regis  Lace. 

The  point  and  pillow  laces  of  Lyme  Regis,  in  Dorsetshire,  were  at  one  time 
as  celebrated  as  those  of  Honiton  and  Blandford.  The  fabrics  of  this  watering- 
place,  which  was  most  fashionable  in  the  eighteenth  century,  were  bought  by 
the  ladies  and  gallants  who  frequented  the  Spa.  Broad  Street,  the  principal 
thoroughfare,  was  inhabited  by  lace-makers,  and  the  gossips  entertained  their 
patrons  with  stories  of  the  valiant  deeds  of  Lyme  men  in  Monmouth's  time,  and 
by  talk  and  raffles  accelerated  the  sale  of  their  points.  When  Queen  Charlotte 
first  entered  England  she  wore  "  a  head  and  lappets  of  Dorset  lace,"  and  later,  a 
splendid  lace  dress  was  made  for  her  at  Lyme,  which  gave  great  satisfaction  at 
Court.  So  quick  was  the  decline  of  the  industry,  however,  that  when  a  worker 
was  invited  from  Lyme  Regis  to  assist  in  carrying  out  the  order  for  the  marriage 
lace  of  Queen  Victoria,  not  one  was  to  be  found  in  the  town.  (Further  description 
will  be  found  under  Dorsetshire  Lace.) 


A     DICTIONARY     OF    LACE. 


179 


Macrame  Lace. 

This  pillow  lace  is  made  in  many  of  the  convents  of  the  Riviera,  and  is  taught 
by  the  nuns  to  the  cottagers,  the  children  of  either  sex  beginning  their  training  in 

this  handicraft  very  young. 
It  is  a  survival  of  the  Knotted 
Point  lace,  which  was  much 
used  in  Spain  and  Italy  during 
the  fifteenth,  sixteenth,  and 
seventeenth  centuries,  for  the 
ornamentation  of  Church  vest- 
ments, and  other  ecclesiastical 
purposes,  and  is  still  worn  by 
the  peasants  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  Rome.  The  name 
Macrame  is  of  Arabic  origin ; 
in  the  great  picture  of  the 
supper  in  the  house  of  Simon 
the  Canaanite,  by  Paul 
Veronese,  the  ends  of  the  table- 
cloth are  ornamented  with 
Macrame  lace.  House  linen 
richly  ornamented  with 
Macrame  forms  an  important 
item  in  the  trousseau  of  a 
Genoese  lady.  It  was  not 
until  1843  that  the  Macrame 
made  on  the  Riviera  was 
executed  in  any  but  the 
simplest  designs  ;  then  a  piece 
of  old  Macrame  or  knotted  lace 
was  brought  by  Baroness 
d'Asti  to  the  Albergo  de  Poveri 
from  Rome.  Marie  Picchetti, 
one  of  the  workers,  carefully 
unpicked  and  examined  the  complicated  knots,  and  managed  to  discover  the  art 
of  producing  the  intricate  effects.  Since  then  many  fresh  patterns  have  been 
designed,  and  the  results  are  excellent.  (Under  Genoa  Lace  other  particulars  will 
be  found.) 

Madagascar  Lace. 

A  twisted  thread  lace  made  by  the  natives  of  the  island  from  which  it  takes  its 
name.  It  possesses  no  artistic  value. 

Madeira  Laces. 

Bobbin  laces,  imitating  Maltese,  Torchon,  and  Mechlin,  are  made  in  Madeira, 
but  there  is  no  native  lace  belonging  to  this  place ;  the  manufactory  has  existed 
for  about  sixty  years. 

N  2 


Fringed  border    of    Knotted   White   Thread,    Punto   a 
Groppo,  or  Macrame  work,  of  Genoa,  8f  inches  wide  ; 
nineteenth  century. 


i8o 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Madras  Lace. 

Bobbin  lace,  imitating  the  designs  and  methods  of  Maltese  black  and  white 
silk  guipure,  is 
made  in  Madras. 
The  school  for 
making  the 
fabric  is  of 
recent  founda- 
tion. 

Maltese  Lace. 

A  bobbin- 
made  lace,  which 
has  been  made 
in  Malta  ever 
since  the  com- 
mencement of 
the  sixteenth 
century.  The 
character  of  the 
design,  which 
was  at  that  time 

like  the  Mechlin  or  Valenciennes  without  the  fine  ground,  has  since  altered, 
and  the  lace  now  resembles  Greek  guipures.  It  is  now  made  both  in  thread 
and  in  black  and  white  silk,  known  as  Barcelona  silk,  such  as  is  used  in 
Spain  and  France  for  the  Chantilly  blonde  laces.  Occasionally  some  raised 
stitches  are  worked,  but  usually  the  patterns  are  simple  and  geometric  in 
character,  Maltese  lace  is  also  manufactured  in  Auvergne,  Le  Puy,  Ireland, 
Buckinghamshire,  and  Bedfordshire.  In  Ceylon  the  natives  work  a  kind  of 
Maltese,  and  in  Madras  also  this  make  is  worked. 

Manillese  Lace. 

This  work  is  executed  in  the  Philippine  Isles  with  Manilla  grass;  it  is  a  kind 
of  drawn  thread  work,  combined  with 
embroidery,  and  does  not  resemble 
lace  to  a  great  extent.  Sometimes 
the  fibre  is  tatted  or  twisted  in 
loops. 


Maltese  Lace,  a  bobbin-made  fabric,  usually  executed  in  black,  white, 
or  ecru  silk  ;  nineteenth  century. 


Lace-like  border,  2|  inches  wide,  from  Manilla, 
Philippine   Islands  ;  nineteenth  century. 


Mantilla  Lace. 

The  national  head-dress  of  the 
women  is  the  principal  form  of  lace 
manufactured  in  Spain.  There  are 
three  kinds,  (i)  White,  which  is  the 
colour  de  rigueur  for  the  Spanish  lady  on  state  occasions,  such  as  birthdays,  bull- 
fights, and  Easter  festivals.  (2)  The  second  is  the  black  blonde  lace  mantilla. 
(3)  The  third  mantilla,  or  head-dress  for  ordinary  wear,  is  frequently  made  of 
silk  and  trimmed  with  black  velvet  and  lace.  The  silk  for  these  mantillas  is 


(1)  Lappet  of  eighteenth-century  Mechlin   Bobbin   Lace,   4k   inches  wide.      The   main   ground   of 
the  compartments  is  of  small  meshes ;   here  and  there  the  intervening  groups  of  ornament 
are  lightened  by  the  insertion   of  fancy  open  bars. 

(2)  Lappet  (one  of  a  pair)  of  Valenciennes   Bobbin   Lace,  3J  inches  wide.      French,  eighteenth 
century. 


A    DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


181 


specially  woven  near  Barcelona  for  the  purpose,  and  it  is  used  for  the  blonde 
laces  throughout  the  country.  A  Spanish  woman's  mantilla  is  held  sacred  by 
law,  and  cannot  be  seized  for  debt. 

Margherita  Lace. 

A  lace-like  fabric  made  by  embroidering  on  machine-made  net ;  it  is  an 
invention  of  the  nineteenth  century,  named  after  the  present  Queen  of  Italy,  and 
is  made  in  Venice  in  large  quantities  at  the  present  day. 

Mechlin  Lace. 

Before  1665,  nearly  all  lace  made  in  Flanders  was  called  Malines.  The  pillow 
laces  of  Ypres,  Bruges,  Dunkirk,  and  Courtrai  were  so  named  in  Paris.  In  1681, 
a  visitor  to  Flanders  notes  that  "  The  common  people  here,  as  throughout  all 
Flanders,  occupy  themselves  in  making  the  white  lace  known  as  Malines." 
Mechlin  lace 
became  fash- 
ionable in 
England  at 
the  end  of  the 
seventeenth 
century,  and 
Queen  Anne 
purchased  it 
largely,  pay- 
in?,  in  1713, 
^247  6s.  gd. 
for  eighty- 
three  yaids. 
It  was  the 
favourite  lace 
of  Queen 
Charlotte; 
and  Napoleon, 
when  he  first 
saw  the  ex- 
quisite tracery 
of  the  Cathe- 
dral spire  of 
Antwerp,  ex- 
claimed, 

"  C'est  comme  de  la  dentelle  de  Malines."  This  lace  was  much  used  at  the 
India  muslin  period,  at  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century,  to  edge  that  fabric, 
its  lightness  making  it  specially  useful  for  the  purpose.  Early  examples  of  a 
lace  made  at  Mechlin  are  found  with  brides  lighting  the  closer  ground  near 
the  pattern. 

The  old  Mechlin  laces  are  sometimes  called  Broderie  de  Malines.  The 
lace  is  extremely  costly,  being  made  with  the  finest  Antwerp  thread.  It  is  made 


Border  of  Mechlin  Bobbin-made  Lace,  3J  inches  wide ;  end  of  the 
eighteenth  century. 


1 82  HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

in  one  piece  upon  the  pillow  with  bobbins,  the  ground  being  formed  with  the 
pattern  ;  much  skill  is  required  in  its  manufacture.  A  shiny  plait  or  cordonnet 
usually  surrounds  the  sprigs  and  dots  which  form  the  designs  on  the  reseau 
ground.  There  are  two  kinds  of  Mechlin  grounds  used  by  the  lace-workers  : 
circular  and  hexagonal  shaped  mesh.  (Under  Flanders  Lace  further  particulars 
will  be  found.) 
Mediaeval  Guipure. 

A  name  given  to  Knotted  Laces  and  Macrame  (which  are  described  under 
their  headings). 

Menin  Lace. 

Bobbin  lace  of  the  Valenciennes  lace  type,  made  at  Menin.  (It  is  described 
under  Valenciennes  Lace.) 

Mermaid's  Lace. 

A  name  sometimes  given  to  Venetian  points  on  account  of  the  legend  of  the 
invention  of  bobbin  lace  by  a  fisher  girl,  whose  lover  caught  a  piece  of  white 
coralline  in  his  net,  the  graceful  stuff  being  imitated  by  the  girl  as  she  twisted  the 
ends  and  weights  of  the  net  as  bobbins  are  twisted. 

Mignonette  Lace. 

A  pattern  of  light,  fine  bobbin  lace ;  also  called  Blonde  de  Fil  and  Point  de 
Tulle.  It  was  one  of  the  early  forms  of  lace,  and  was  much  used  before  the  middle 
of  the  sixteenth  century,  when  Colbert  established  the  Points  de  France.  The 
thread  was  bleached  and  spun  at  Antwerp,  and  was  similar  to  that  used  for  Lille 
lace.  Mignonette  was  a  narrow  lace,  never  exceeding  two  or  three  inches.  It  was 
made  in  Paris,  Lorraine,  Auvergne,  Normandy,  Arras,  and  Switzerland.  Much  of 
it  was  exported.  It  was  the  favourite  trimming  for  head-dresses,  on  account  of  its 
lightness  and  delicacy.  Mignonette  pattern  is  still  largely  made. 

Milan  Point. 

This  point  lace  was  justly  celebrated  in  the  seventeenth  century.  Lace  was, 
however,  known  and  made  in  Milan  at  a  much  earlier  date.  The  earliest  record  of 
Italian  lace  known  belongs  to  Milan,  being  the  document  setting  forth  the  division 
of  personal  property  between  the  sisters  Angela  and  Heppolita  Sforza  Visconli  in 

1493- 

Henry  VIII.  of  England  is  mentioned  as  wearing  an  edging  of  lace  of  purple 
silk  and  gold  worked  at  Milan.  In  a  wardrobe  account  of  the  wife  of  James  I. 
(1606)  is  noted — "  One  suit,  with  cannons  there  unto,  of  silver  lace,  shadowed  with 
silk  Milan  lace."  Lace  now  made  at  Milan  is  of  the  Torchon  variety,  but  repro- 
ductions of  the  fine  old  Points  de  Milan  are  produced  in  Venice  at  the  present  day. 

Mirecourt  Lace. 

This  bobbin-made  lace  resembles  that  of  Lille,  but  during  the  last  thirty  years 
has  far  surpassed  the  latter  in  make.  Lace  has  been  made  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Mirecourt  since  the  seventeenth  century,  and  the  town  has  formed  the  head- 
quarters of  the  district.  About  seventy  years  ago  flowers  and  sprigs  imitating 
the  Brussels  patterns  were  attempted  with  great  success  at  Mirecourt ;  these 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


183 


sprigs  are  mounted  upon  a  machine-made  ground,   as   in  the   modern    Honiton 
applique. 

Mixed    Lace. 

The  name  sometimes  applied  to  lace  partly  made  with  the  needle  and  partly 
with  bobbins,  such  as  the  Honiton  sprays,  or  to  needle-point  or  bobbin  sprigs 
mounted  on  machine-made  net. 

Modern  Point  Lace. 

In  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century  a  desire  to  imitate  the  Renaissance 
laces  of  Spain,  Venice,  and  Genoa,  began  to  show  itself,  and  the  designs  were 
faithfully  copied  and  worked 
with  the  needle  in  the  old 
stitches.  This  revival  of  the 
old  work  has  been  carried  to 
the  highest  perfection  amongst 
the  upper-middle  classes  in 
France,  and  is  known  there 
as  Dentelle  Renaissance  and 
Dentelle  Irlandaise,  but  being 
made  by  the  leisured  classes 
for  their  own  use,  has  never 
been  known  as  an  article  of 
commerce.  Modern  needle- 
point lace  has  been  made  with 
great  commercial  and  artistic 
success  at  the  royal  lace 
factory  in  the  Island  of 
Burano,  near  Venice,  since  1872.  All  the  finest  needle-point  laces  are  now 
made  there,  such  as  Alencon,  Burano  Point,  Brussels  Point,  Rose  Point  de  Venise, 
and  Point  d'Angleterre. 

Moorish  Lace. 

A  lace  work  made  in  Morocco,  and  used  as  an  edging  to  household  linen  and 
women's  dresses  in  the  harems.  It  is  of  little  artistic  or  commercial  value. 

A  coarse-patterned  lace  was  made  by  the  Moors  in  the  sixteenth  century. 
They  had  evidently  learned  the  art  of  lace-making  in  a  perfunctory  manner  from 
the  Spaniards  or  the  Maltese,  as  the  patterns  show :  these  are  of  the  geometrical 
type.  This  lace  is  no  longer  manufactured,  but  may  sometimes  be  acquired  in 
the  native  towns.  It  is  one  of  the  laces  mentioned  in  the  "  Revolte  des  Passamus," 
a  poem  written  in  1661. 

Needle-point. 

A  name  given  to  all  kinds  of  lace  worked  with  a  needle,  as  distinct  from 
bobbin-worked  lace  or  "point  lace,"  which  last  term  refers  to  the  fine  quality, 
and  may  indicate  either  Needle-point  or  bobbin-made. 

Normandy  Laces. 

The  bobbin  lace  of  Normandy  forms  an  essential  part  in  the  costume  of  the 


Reproduction  of  Gros  Point  de  Venise,  made  with. needle- 
point bars  and  fillings,  with  machine-made  tape  and 
cordonnet  over-sewn  ;  nineteenth  century. 


184 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE     LACE. 


peasants,  whose  caps,  having  rich  lappets  of  lace,  are  handed  down  from 
generation  to  generation;  those  of  the  present  day  vary  little  from  the  kind 
worn  in  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries.  Lace-making  has  always  been  the 
principal  occupation  of  the  wives  and  daughters  of  the  Normandy  fishermen.  The 
lace  trade  made  rapid  strides  in  the  eighteenth  century.  From  Arras  to  St.  Malo 
there  were  no  fewer  than  thirty  centres  of  industry ;  these  chiefly  imitated  the 
pillow  laces  of  Mechlin.  Black  thread  laces  were  also  made,  besides  the  gold  and 
silver  guipures  used  for  ecclesiastical  purposes.  Petit  Poussin,  Ave  Maria,  Point 
du  Dieppe,  Point  du  Havre,  and  Dentelle  a  la  Vierge  are  the  best-known  patterns. 
The  laces  made  at  Caen  and  Bayeux  are  quite  distinctive,  being  like  the  silk 
blondes,  in  black,  white,  and  ecru,  made  at  Chantilly  and  in  Spain. 

Northamptonshire  Laces. 

The  bobbin  laces  made  in  Northamptonshire  are  all  reproductions  of  the  kinds 
made  abroad  and  known  as  Brussels,  Lille,  and  Valenciennes.  The  earliest 
English  lace  of  any  artistic  value,  made  in  the  county,  was  from  old  Flemish 

designs  in  the  seventeenth  century ;  later 
the  fine  Brussels  ground  was  worked,  and 
specimens  are  found  which  have  the  design 
run  or  sewn  in  with  the  needle  on  to  the 
bobbin-made  ground.  It  was  in  1778  that 
the  "  point  "  ground,  as  it  is  locally  called, 
was  introduced.  The  term  is  misleading,  as 
it  was  not  point  ground  in  the  literal  sense 
of  the  term  (namely,  made  with  the  needle- 
point), but  refers  to  its  superior  effect.  It 
is  as  fine  and  clear  as  the  celebrated  Lille 
ground,  and  was  much  used  for  the  baby 
laces,  when  the  tiny  lace-trimmed  infants' 
caps  were  in  fashion.  The  patterns  were 
taken  from  those  of  Lille  and  Mechlin,  hence 
the  laces  of  Buckinghamshire  and  Bedford- 
shire are  often  called  "  English  Lille."  The 
outbreak  of  the  war  with  France  gave  a 
great  impulse  to  the  lace  trade  of  North- 
ampton, as  it  closed  our  ports  to  the  French 
laces.  From  that  time  a  sort  of  fausse  Valen- 
ciennes, called  locally  "French  ground,"  has 
been  made.  Valenciennes  as  fine  as  any  made  in  Hainault  was  also  made  until 
the  cessation  of  the  war.  The  lace  is  still  manufactured  at  Tiffield  and  in 
other  lace- making  districts  in  the  county. 

Nuns'  Work. 

In  mediaeval  times  much  needlework  of  every  kind  was  made  by  the  inmates 
of  convents,  who  imparted  the  knowledge  to  their  high-born  lay-pupils,  these  ladies 
again  teaching  the  art  to  their  maids  and  attendants.  Crochet,  knitting,  netting, 


Northamptonshire  Lace,  made  about 
1800.  The  clearness  of  the  ground 
could  not  be  surpassed  by  the  Lille 
workers.  Much  of  this  ground  was 
made  on  the  pillow  with  bobbins,  by 
men. 


A     DICTIONARY     OF    LACE.  185 

cut-work,  drawn-work,  bobbin  and  hand-made  laces,  were  all  at  one  time  known 
as  Nuns'  work. 

Old  Lace. 

A  term  indifferently  used,  either  for  needle-point  or  bobbin  laces,  before  the 
introduction  of  machine-made  net  grounds  in  1768. 

Open  Lace. 

A  name  sometimes  applied  to  Darned  Netting. 

Opus  Anglicanum. 

Needlework  and  embroidery  executed  by  the  English  nuns,  the  beauty  of 
whose  work  was  already  of  European  fame  in  1246.  The  twisted  gold  and  silver 
threads,  cut-work,  and  lacis,  were  included  under  this  general  term.  (Descriptions 
are  given  under  the  various  headings.) 

Opus  Araneum. 

Spider  Work.  The  ancient  name  for  Cluny  Guipure  Lace  and  Darned  Netting 
(under  which  headings  it  is  described.) 

Opus  Consutum. 

The  ancient  name  for  Applique. 

Opus  Filatorium. 

The  ancient  name  for  Netting  and  Darned  Netting. 

Opus  Scissum. 

The  ancient  name  for  Cut-work. 

Opus  Tiratum. 

The  ancient  name  for  Drawn-work. 

Orsa  Lace. 

A  bobbin  lace  made  of  unbleached  thread  by  the  peasants  in  Sweden.  It 
is  described  under  Dalecarlian  Lace. 

Ouvrages  Masches. 

A  mediaeval  name  for  Darned  Netting. 

Oyah  Lace. 

This  lace,  sometimes  called  Point  de  Turque,  is  a  fancy  work  executed  by 
the  ladies  of  the  Turkish  harems,  in  coloured  silks,  which  are  formed  into  coarse 
lace  with  a  crochet  hook. 

Pelestrina  Lace. 

The  lace  made  on  the  island  of  Pelestrina,  which  is  about  five  miles  from 
Venice,  is  executed  with  bobbins.  The  vine  leaf  and  other  effective  patterns  are 
chiefly  worked,  the  lace  being  used  for  trimming  furniture  and  blinds,  and  in  large 
pieces  for  curtains  and  counterpanes.  The  revival  in  the  lace  industry  on  this 
island  took  place  under  the  direction  of  Fambri  and  Jesurum,  in  1872,  at  the  same 
time  as  the  revival  of  the  needle-point  laces  of  Burano. 

Peniche  Lace. 

This  bobbin  lace  is  described  under  Portuguese  Laces. 


1 86  HISTORY     OF     HAND-MADE    LACE. 

Persian  Drawn -work. 

Borders  on  both  linen  and  muslin  are  extensively  made  of  drawn-work  in 
Persia.  Complicated  designs  are  executed  such  as  are  never  attempted  in  the 
European  variety.  Coloured  silks  are  used  for  buttonholing  the  raw  edges  of  the 
material. 

Petit  Motif. 

A  bobbin  lace  of  extremely  graceful  pattern.  It  was  introduced  by  a  French 
lace-maker  of  the  nineteenth  century,  and  is  now  made,  not  only  in  France,  but 
also  in  Italy  and  Belgium.  It  is  always  the  same  in  quality  and  design,  though 
varying  in  width,  and  belongs  to  the  tape  lace  type. 

Petit  Poussin. 

A  design  mentioned  under  the  heading  of  Normandy  Laces. 

Pillow   Lace. 

A  term  which  is  frequently  inaccurately  used  to  describe  bobbin  lace.  Needle- 
point and  knotted  laces  are  also  made  on  a  pillow,  so  that  the  term  Pillow  Lace 
gives  no  correct  description  of  the  lace  made  on  a  stuffed  cushion  by  twisting 
and  plaiting  threads  wound  on  bobbins.  This  should  always  be  called  bobbin  lace. 
One  of  the  first  steps  towards  clearing  away  the  mists  which  surround  the  art  of 
lace-making  will  have  been  taken,  when  it  is  clearly  understood  that  lace  of  all 
kinds  is  supported  in  the  hands  of  the  worker  on  a  pillow,  whether  a  needle, 
bobbins,  or  simple  knotting  with  the  fingers,  unaided  by  any  instrument,  be  the 
mode  of  construction. 

Plaited  Lace. 

The  laces  made  of  gold,  silver,  or  silk  threads  in  mediaeval  times,  which  were 
superseded  by  the  knotted  laces  and  reticellas  in  the  sixteenth  century,  were 
plaited.  A  special  kind  was  called  Point  d'Espagne,  on  account  of  large  quantities 
being  worked  in  Spain.  England,  Germany,  and  France  also  made  plaited  laces, 
but  those  of  Genoa  and  Spain  were  never  rivalled  by  other  countries.  They  were 
at  first  simple  in  design,  like  the  reticellas,  but  afterwards  became  most  elaborate ; 
they  were  made  upon  the  pillow  with  bobbins,  and  were  used  to  trim  the  ruffs  and 
falling  collars  in  the  seventeenth  century.  The  plaited  laces  of  the  present  day  are 
those  of  Malta,  Auvergne,  Bedfordshire,  and  Buckinghamshire.  Yak  and  Cluny 
laces  are  also  plaited  ;  they  are  made  in  both  black  and  white. 

Point  a  Carreaux. 

One  of  the  French  names  for  bobbin  lace. 

Point  a  1' Aiguille. 

A  term  at  one  time  used  for  Brussels  Lace. 

Point  Conte. 

The  French  name  for  Darned  Netting.  A  kind  of  lace  work  made  by  darning 
counted  stitches  upon  a  net-work  ground. 

Point  Coupe.  ' 

The  French  name  for  Cut-work. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE.  187 

Point  d'Angleterre. 

This  is  described  under  English  Point. 

Point  de  Champ. 

A  term  applied  to  any  lace  made  with  a  net  ground. 

Point  de  France. 

The  name  bestowed  by  Louis  XIV.  on  the  fabric  which  was  first  made  in  his 
reign  at  the  Chateau  de  L'Onray,  near  Alen9on,  when  Colbert,  «his  minister, 
determined  to  improve  the  lace-making  of  France  so  as  to  raise  the  revenues 
of  the  kingdom.  For  this  purpose  Italian  lace-workers  were  brought  over  to  teach 
the  Frenchwomen,  so  that  the  early  Points  de  France  strongly  resemble  the 
Venetian  Points  of  the  period.  Louis  XIV.  desired  that  no  other  lace  should  be 
worn  at  Court,  and  lace  factories  were  started  in  many  parts  of  the  kingdom  to 
supply  the  enormous  demand.  Colbert's  plan  that  "  Fashion  was  to  be  to  France 
what  the  mines  of  Peru  were  to  Spain,"  was  crowned  with  success.  The  Point  de 
France  supplanted  that  of  Flanders  and  Venice,  but  its  price  made  it  of  use  only 
to  the  affluent,  so  that  when  the  wearing  of  lace  became  general,  those  who  could 
not  afford  the  costly  needle-point,  replaced  it  by  the  more  reasonable  bobbin  lace. 
This  explains  the  enormous  increase  in  the  production  of  bobbin  lace  at  that  time. 
Ruffles,  cravats,  dresses,  valances  for  the  bed  and  the  bath,  coverlets  and  curtains 
were  all  of  the  beautiful  fabric ;  and  other  capitals  of  the  world  soon  followed  the 
example  in  luxury  set  by  Paris.  At  an  audience  given  by  the  Dauphin  to  the 
Siamese  ambassadors  at  the  leve  (literally  in  those  days  "  the  getting-up"),  the  bed 
was  entirely  covered  with  the  richest  Point  de  France.  When  the  ambassadors 
visited  Louis  at  Versailles,  they  were  each  presented  with  cravats  and  ruffles  of  the 
finest  point.  Gradually  fresh  characteristics  crept  into  the  Point  de  France 
designs,  which  had  been  at  first  wholly  Venetian,  and  the  old  name  died  out, 
being  replaced  by  distinctive  appellations,  such  as  Alencon,  Argentan,  etc. 
Alen9on  lace  was  called  Point  de  France  until  Madame  Gilbert,  the  manager, 
practically  invented  a  new  lace,  an  account  of  which  will  be  found  under  Alen£on 
Lace. 

Point  de  Medicis. 

The  name  given  in  France  to  the  Italian  Raised  Points  when  they  were  first 
made  popular  by  Catherine  de'  Medicis  on  her  arrival. 

Point  de  Paris. 

A  narrow  bobbin  lace,  much  worn  in  the  seventeenth  century.  It  was  made  in 
Normandy  and  near  Paris.  It  was  sometimes  known  as  Point  Double. 

Point  de  Tulle. 

The  name  by  which  Mignonette  Lace  is  sometimes  called. 

Point  de  Turque. 

A  French  name  for  Oyah  Lace. 

Point  Double. 

A  narrow  bobbin  lace,  described  under  Point  de  Paris. 


1 88  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

Point  du  Havre. 

A  description  of  this  will  be  found  under  Dieppe  Lace. 

Point  Gaze. 

A  variety  of  Brussels  Lace. 

Point   Qotico. 

This  is  described  under  Punto  Gotico. 

Point  Lace. 

This  term  indicates  the  fine  quality  of  the  lace.     Needle-point  lace  has  the 


Cuff  of  Needle-point  Lace  of  very  minute  design  and  execution,  usually  known  as  Point  Neige  ; 

eighteenth  century. 


A    DICTIONARY    OP"    LACE. 


189 


technical  peculiarity  that  a  single  needle  and  thread  are  alone  used  in  its  manufac- 
ture, but  the  word  "point"  is  used  by  connoisseurs  and  experts  for  both  needle  and 
bobbin  kinds  to  designate  laces  of  superior  design  and  workmanship  ;  thus  it  is 
that  Point  de  Valenciennes,  Point  de  Malines,  and  other  bobbin  laces  are  so 
described  when  they  are  specially  good  and  fine. 

In  needle-point  lace,  the  pattern  is  first  traced  upon  a  piece  of  parchment ;  the 
parchment  is  then  stitched  to  a  bit  of  stout  linen  ;  a  skeleton  pattern  is  made  by 
\vorking  the  leading  lines  of  the  design  on  to  the  foundation  by  means  of  threads, 
and  these  threads  are  fastened  here  and  there  to  the  parchment  by  stitching.  The 
skeleton  pattern  is  worked  over  with  a  compact  covering  in  button-hole  stitch,  and 
between  these  outlines  are  inserted  "ties,"  or  "links,"  or  complete  "fillings"  of 
elaborate  stitches.  When  this  is  finished,  a  sharp  instrument  is  passed  between 
the  parchment  and  the  linen,  and  the  lace  released  from  its  two  foundations. 
Spain,  tradition  says,  learned  the  art 
of  point  lace-making  from  Italy,  and 
communicated  it  to  Flanders,  who,  in 
return  for  the  art  of  needle-point  lace, 
taught  the  Spaniards  how  to  make 
bobbin  lace. 

The  richest  and  most  compli- 
cated of  all  point  lace  is  the  Rose, 
or  Raised  Venice  point  ("  Gros  Point 
de  Venise"),  which  differs  from  the 
ordinary  needle-point  lace  in  that  its 
outlines  are  in  relief  by  means  of 
threads  of  padding  placed  inside 
and  worked  over,  the  work  being  sup- 
ported on  a  cushion  in  the  hands  of 
the  lace-maker.  Sometimes  there  is 
double  and  triple  relief,  and  infinite 
varieties  of  stitches  are  introduced 
into  the  flowers,  or  geometrical 
designs,  each  outline  being  surrounded  by  a  "pearl"  or  "loop,"  occasionally 
made  more  beautiful  and  complicated  by  half-a-dozen  other  loops  or  scallops, 
as  in  Point  Neige.  Silk  was  frequently  used  for  such  laces,  sometimes  in  the 
natural  cream  colour,  sometimes  in  more  brilliant  hues. 

Then  came  the  point  laces  with  grounds  formed  by  the  ties  or  brides  being 
arranged  in  a  honeycomb  fashion.  The  six-sided  mesh  soon  followed.  These 
meshes  became  thinner  until  the  buttonholing  was  discontinued,  which  gave  the 
lightness  and  delicacy  so  much  admired.  Thus  Venetian  Point  a  Reseau  was 
evolved,  and  the  French  lace-makers  of  Alen9on  and  Argentan  soon  copied  and 
improved  upon  the  new  method — so  much  so,  in  fact,  that  it  was  long  thought  that 
the  French  laces  only  had  the  light  grounds  of  hexagonally  arranged  brides,  until 
Venetian  point  of  an  earlier  date  was  found  to  be  similarly  arranged.  The  art  of 
making  point  lace  has  always  been  best  carried  out  in  Italy.  Its  beauty  was 


Point  Lace  Flower  in  relief,  ornamented  with 
fleurs  volants  ;  nineteenth  century. 


igo  HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

greatest  in  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries,  both  in  workmanship  and  in 
artistic  design. 

In  the  eighteenth  century  fashion  demanded  lighter  and  finer  laces  than  could  be 
made  with  the  needle,  so  that  bobbin  laces  were  preferred.  Lately,  however,  point 
lace  has  again  been  made  for  trade  purposes.  Thirty  years  ago  the  work  was  done 
by  ladies  for  their  own  amusement,  and  it  is  still  executed  to  a  very  small  extent 
by  them,  but  the  modern  wholesome  desire  for  out-door  life  and  exercise  is  not 
compatible  with  such  fireside  occupations  needing  much  application.  The  old 
designs  and  stitches  are  now  revived  in  all  their  loveliness  at  Venice,  but  the 
exquisitely-fine  Antwerp  threads  once  used  cannot  now  be  procured. 

Point  Pecheur. 

Point  Pecheur,  or  Fisherman's  Lace,  is  a  bobbin  lace  resembling  Maltese  lace, 
but  less  monotonous  in  design  and  less  regular.  It  is  now  made  chiefly  in  Italy,  in 
Genoa,  Savona,  at  Como,  and  in  other  lace-making  districts.  It  is  made  in  both 
black  and  cream  thread. 

Point  Tire. 

The  French  name  for  Drawn-work. 

Point  Tresse. 

In  the  expenses  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  lace  made  of  human  hair,  or  Point  Tresse, 
is  frequently  mentioned.  In  the  inventory  of  Marie  Stuart  "  Une  quaree  fait  a 
Point  Tresse  "  is  mentioned.  The  Dalecarlian  peasant  girls  were  expert  workers 
in  human  hair.  This  work  fetched  a  high  price  on  account  of  its  rarity,  and 
was  generally  done  by  old  people  in  their  own  silvery  white  hair.  Louis  XVI.  wore 
a  cravat  of  silvery  white  human  hair  at  his  coronation.  It  is  probable  that  the 
manufacture  of  lace  made  of  human  hair  dates  back  to  the  time  when  the  hair  of 
the  vanquished  was  made  into  ornamental  plaits  and  fringes  to  adorn  the  mantles 
of  the  conquering  barbarians.  In  the  time  of  Charles  I.  it  was  the  custom  to  form 
pictures  or  rough  portraits  with  the  real  hair  of  the  person  represented.  In  some 
parts  of  India  hair  obtained  from  the  tails  of  elephants  is  plaited  or  woven  into 
rough  net-work  border. 

The  only  kind  of  work  done  in  England  with  human  hair  is  the  now  almost 
extinct  art  of  elaborate  plaited  or  knotted  locks  let  into  brooches  and  pendants. 
The  true  Point  Tresse  is  no  longer  made. 

Polychrome. 

This  is  the  only  original  kind  of  lace  invented  during  the  nineteenth  century, 
Petit  Motif,  Devonia,  Margherita,  and  such  nineteenth  century  laces,  being  merely 
fresh  patterns  of  old  types.  The  Polychromo  lace  is  made  with  bobbins,  the  finest 
silk  threads  being  used  instead  ot  flax.  The  silks  are  of  different  colours,  as  many 
as  thirty  varying  shades  of  one  colour  sometimes  being  used,  and  perhaps  400 
bobbins  on  a  border  a  few  inches  in  width.  The  effect  is  very  beautiful,  and  the 
lace,  which  is  used  both  for  costly  furniture  trimming  and  for  personal  adornment, 
is  made  from  old  Venetian  and  Raphaelesque  designs. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


191 


Pope's    Point. 

A  name  sometimes  given  to  Venetian  Point  Lace  (which  is  described  under 
Venetian  Laces). 

Portuguese  Laces. 

The   old  Portuguese  Point  lace  resembles  flat  Venetian  Point.     There  was 
little  commercial  lace-making  in  Portugal  before  the  eighteenth  century  ;  it  formed 


II 

B  o 


. 

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£5' 
g.* 


91 


i92  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

the  work  and  amusement  of  a  few  women  who  executed  orders  in  their  own 
houses.  Stringent  Sumptuary  laws  were  enacted  in  1749,  which  discouraged  the 
wearing  of  lace.  After  the  earthquake  at  Lisbon,  in  1755,  the  Marquis  de  Pombal 
founded  a  lace  manufactory.  Early  in  the  present  century  a  coarse  white  bobbin 
lace  was  made  in  Lisbon  and  its  environs.  Bobbin  lace  of  the  Torchon  variety 
was  also  made  at  Madeira,  but  the  industry  died  out  until  about  twenty  years  ago, 
when  a  school  was  set  up  and  lace-making  re-commenced.  Much  of  the  lace  of 
Madeira  is  made  entirely  by  men.  The  patterns  are  mostly  Maltese  or  Greek  in 
character,  the  women  being  employed  on  the  well-known  Madeira  embroidery. 

Lace  is  now  extensively  made  at  Peniche,  a  little  peninsula  north  of  Lisbon, 
where  the  wives  of  the  fishermen  are  expert  in  the  art.  The  fabric  made  is  in 
very  broad  widths  without  joins,  and  these  necessitate  wide  pillows  which  are 
cylindrical  in  form.  The  women  sit  with  the  pillows  across  their  knees,  supported 
at  each  side  by  low  stools.  Both  black  and  white  laces  are  made.  Some  of  the 
designs  are  like  the  Maltese,  geometrical ;  others  have  large  flower  patterns  with 
mesh  grounds,  like  the  Spanish  lace  patterns.  The  designs  are  usually  greatly 
wanting  in  artistic  feeling. 

Rotten  Kant. 

This  is  described  under  Antwerp  Lace. 

Punto  a  Qroppo. 

The  Italian  name  for  Knotted  Lace. 

Punto  a  Piombini. 

The  Italian  term  for  lace  made  on  the  pillow  by  means  of  bobbins  weighted 
with  iron. 

Punto  a  Rilievo. 

The  Italian  name  tor  Venice  Raised  Point  Lace. 

Punto  di  Burano. 

The  Italian  name  for  Burano  Point  (which  is  described  under  that  heading). 

Punto  Qotico. 

A  pattern  of  needle-point  lace  made  in  Rome  during  the  sixteenth  century. 
It  is  one  of  the  earliest  designs  of  lace  made  at  the  time  when  all  designs  were 
geometrical.  Those  of  Punto  Gotico  follow  the  lines  of  the  simplest  forms  of 
Gothic  architecture. 

Punto  in  Aria. 

The  name  given  to  a  variety  of  delicate  laces  produced  in  the  seventeenth 
century,  literally  "  sketches  in  the  air,"  to  distinguish  them  from  the  cut-work 
embroidery  and  darned  netting  which  had  hitherto  been  the  well-known  forms 
of  lace.  Constant  diversity  of  pattern  gave  rise  to  many  special  names. 
Venetian  Point,  Rose  Point,  Point  Neige,  Gros  Point  de  Venise,  Point  Plat  de 
Venise,  are  all  Puntos  in  Aria,  whose  characteristic  is  the  exuberant  richness  of 
the  Italian  design.  Such  lace  is  the  most  splendid  product  of  the  great  Venetian 
Lace  School. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


Punto  Serrato. 

The  Italian  name  for  close  stitch,  buttonhole  stitch,  or  Point  Non6. 

Punto  Tagliato. 

The  Italian  name  for  Cut-work. 

Punto  Tirato. 

The  Italian  name  for  Drawn-work. 

Purls  or  Purling. 

A  primitive  kind  of  lace  formed  of  loops  and  twisted  threads  sewn  upon  the 
edge  of  thick  material  such  as  linen,  silk  or  satin. 

Puy  Laces. 

These  are  described  under  Le  Puy  Laces. 

Ragusa  Lace. 

Needle-point  lace  was  made  at  Ragusa  as  early  as,  or  earlier  than,  at  Venice 
itself.  It  resembled  Venice  Point  in  every  particular,  and  was  frequently  sold  as 
Point  de  Venise,  being  extremely  costly — "  Faite  pour  ruiner  les  fortunes."  The  manu- 
facture of  reticella  practically  ceased  when  the  fashion  set  in  for  light  net-ground 
laces,  and  for  cheaper  pillow  laces.  Gimp  lace  is  still  made  at  Ragusa  in  either 
gold,  silver,  or  silk  threads.  These  threads  are  sewn  together  until  they  form  a 
braid,  the  outer  threads  being  twisted  into  loops  to  make  an  ornamental  edging. 
The  braid  thus  made  is  then  sewn  down  in  designs  and  these  are  connected 
with  corded  bars.  Some  of  the  patterns  used  now  date  back  as  far  as  the  sixteenth 
century,  when  the  gimp  laces  of  Ragusa  were  already  well  known. 

Rattwik  Lace. 

Bobbin  lace  made  by  the  Swedish  peasants,  the  design  being  usually  of  the  old 
lozenge  pattern.  (It  is  described  under  Dalecarlian  Lace.) 

Regency  Point  Lace. 

This  lace,  made  in 
Bedfordshire,  was  in 
great  demand  during 
the  Regency  early 
in  the  nineteenth 
century.  The  edge  is 
thick  ;  the  ground,  a 
complicated  reseau,  or 
hand-made  mesh. 
The  Regency  Point  is 
seldom  made  now,  the 
more  quickly-executed 
plaited  ground  bobbin 
laces  having  entirely 
superseded  it. 
(Further  details  will 

be   found   under    Bed-  Regency  Point  Lace,  made  in  Bedfordshire  ;  early  nineteenth 

fordshire  Lace.)  century. 


1 94  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

Reticella. 

This  needle-point  lace  is  considered  the  earliest  of  all  laces,  for  cut-work  and 
drawn- work,  which  preceded  it,  are  not  veritable  laces,  but  rather  lace-like  work. 
Reticellas,  or  Greek  Point  laces,  were  made  chiefly  from  1480  to  1620,  the 
designs  being  always  of  the  stiff  geometrical  type.  Large  quantities  were  used 
for  the  decoration  of  ecclesiastical  vestments  and  cere  cloths  ;  shrouds  also  were 
made  of,  or  decorated  with,  it.  The  earliest  Reticellas  were  formed  by  stiff  lines 
buttonholed  over,  picots  or  pearls  being  set  at  intervals  along  them.  The  simplest 
geometrical  outlines  were  used  for  these  early  specimens.  Greater  variety  was 

shown  later  :  the  patterns  were  more 
solid,  and  the  bars  more  ornate.  The 
designs,  though  always  formal,  were 
often  arranged  with  excellent  artistic 
effect.  Circles  and  triangles  in  needle- 
point work  were  added,  and  wheels 
introduced  as  seen  in  the  illustration. 

Needle-point  Guipure  (Point  Gotico) ;  Towards  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth 

seventeenth  century.  0      .       .  . 

century   Reticella  lost  its  geometrical 

character,  and  adapted  itself,  as  far  as  the  limitations  of  the  work  would  allow, 
to  the  style  of  design  in  vogue  during  the  Renaissance  period.  The  Ionian 
Islands  were  recognised  as  the  home  of  Reticella  Lace.  In  Germany,  France, 
Spain,  Flanders,  and  England  it  was  made  only  to  a  very  limited  extent, 
although  it  was  largely  worn  in  these  countries,  and  the  portraits  of  this  period 
afford  excellent  opportunities  for  studying  the  various  makes  of  fine  Reticella. 

The  Greek  Lace,  or  Reticella,  of  the  present  day  is  generally  considered  a 
furniture  lace,  on  account  of  the  coarse  but  effective  workmanship  of  the  modern 
patterns.  (They  are  described  under  Greek  Point.) 

Rezel,   Rezeuil. 

A  plain  net  ground,  referred  to  under  Darned  Netting. 

Rhodes  Lace. 

The  islands  in  the  Grecian  Sea— Crete,  Cyprus,  and  Rhodes— have  produced 
lace  work  of  whatever  kind  was  made  at  successive  periods  in  other  countries  : 
Cut-work,  reticella,  guipure,  gold  network  in  mediaeval  times,  and  silk  laces  and 
gimps  at  later  times.  At  present  two  specialities  are  made  at  Rhodes,  a  white 
silk  guipure,  worked  with  a  tambour  needle,  and  a  coloured  silk  lace  sometimes 
called  Ribbon  lace.  Floral  or  geometrical  designs  are  used,  and  embroidery  in 
silver  thread  is  added  to  enrich  the  pattern  in  outline. 

Ricamo  a  Reticella. 

The  Italian  term  for  embroidery  or  darning  on  fine  net- work. 
Ripon  Lace. 

A  coarse  bobbin  lace  was  made  at  Ripon,  in  Yorkshire,  at  the  end  of  the 
eighteenth  and  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century.  The  manufacture  is  now 
extinct. 

Roman  Lace. 

Another  name  for  Greek  Point. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE.  195 

Rond  Point. 

A  term  sometimes  applied  to  laces  which  are  made  with  a  needle  net- 
ground. 

Russian  Lace. 

Cut-work,  darned  netting,  and  drawn-work  were  all  produced  in  Russia  to  a 
small  extent ;  these  were  the  only  needle-point  lace  varieties  made  until  the 
present  century,  when  a  school  was  founded  in  Moscow  under  the  patronage 
of  the  Czarina.  Old  Venice  point  has  there  been  reproduced,  and  it  is  sold 
under  the  name  of  Point  de  Moscow;  every  stitch  is  faithfully  copied,  and  fine 
thread  of  English  make  is  used. 

Peter  the  Great  founded  a  silk  lace  manufacture  at  Novgorod.  In  the  reign  of 
Catherine  II.  there  were  twelve  makers  of  gold  lace  at  St.  Petersburg;  the  designs 
of  the  old  Russian  laces  show  the  Oriental  character  of  the  nation,  and  the  quaint- 
ness  of  execution  betrays  inspiration  from  the  East  rather  than  the  West. 


Eussian  Needle-point  Lace,  "a  Brides  Picotees,"  3§  inches  wide  ;  nineteenth  century.     Given  by  Her 
Royal  Highness  the  Duchess  of  Coburg  to  the  South  Kensington  Museum. 

The  threads  in  the  old  drawn  and  cut  works  are  covered  over  with  coloured  silks 
of  deep  red,  orange,  and  bright  yellows,  dull  blues  and  greens,  like  the  Persian, 
Turkish,  and  Algerian  embroideries.  A  strange  characteristic  of  some  of  the  lace 
work  is  that  coloured  strips  of  brocade  are  let  into  the  open  spaces,  and 
embroidery  of  animals  with  parti-coloured  limbs  is  to  be  found.  In  the  darned 
netting  the  mesh  is  sometimes  of  silk,  sometimes  of  linen  thread,  occasionally  of 
fine  gold  or  silver  wire  darned  with  silk. 

Much  attention  has  been  drawn  to  modern  Russian  lace  since  1874,  when  the 
Duchess  of  Edinburgh,  now  the  Duchess  of  Coburg,  presented  to  the  South 
Kensington  Museum  a  collection  of  Russian  laces.  Amongst  these  are  many 
braid  and  tape  laces,  mostly  from  Torjok  ;  frequently  a  single  thread  of  coloured 
silk  runs  in  the  centre  of  the  loose  pillow-made  braid,  following  all  the  turns. 

o  2 


196  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

Belev,  Vologda,  Riazan,  and  Mzensk  are  also  lace-making  districts  in  Russia. 
Their  productions,  like  all  Russian  laces,  are  rather  coarse,  but  there  is  an  element 
of  originality  in  their  work  and  design,  which  makes  one  regret  that  the  lace 
industry  has  never  been  taken  up  very  seriously  in  Russia,  for  the  production 
being  so  unlike  that  of  other  countries,  it  is  likely  that  if  it  were  developed  some 
fabric  of  striking  originality  would  enrich  the  lace  stores  of  the  world. 

Saxony  Lace. 

This  is  described  under  German  Laces. 

Scotch  Lace. 

Lace-making  was  set  on  foot  in  Scotland  by  one  of  the  lovely  Misses 
Gunning  who,  in  the  eighteenth  century,  astonished  London  with  their  beauty. 
Anne,  Duchess  of  Hamilton,  having  seen  lace-makers  at  work  on  the  Continent, 
introduced  the  art  on  her  husband's  estate.  Women  were  brought  over  from 
France  and  taught  the  Scotch  peasants  "  Bunt  Lace,"  as  it  was  called.  In 
1752  the  Edinburgh  Amusement  says  "The  Duchess  of  Hamilton  has  ordered  a  home 
to  be  set  up  in  Hamilton  for  the  reception  of  twelve  poor  girls  and  a  mistress. 
The  girls  are  to  be  taken  in  at  the  age  of  seven,  clothed,  fed,  taught  to  spin,  make 
lace,  etc.,  and  dismissed  at  fourteen."  Two  years  later  we  read  :  "  Her  Grace's 
small  orphan  family  have,  by  spinning,  gained  a  sum  of  money,  and  lately  presented 
the  Duke  and  Duchess  with  a  double  piece  of  Holland  and  some  suits  of  exceed- 
ingly fine  lace  ruffles  of  their  own  manufacture,  which  their  Graces  did  them  the 
honour  to  wear  on  the  Duke's  birthday,  July  i4th,  and  which  vied  with  anything 
worn  on  the  occasion,  though  there  was  a  splendid  company  present."  Lace- 
making  was  introduced  into  the  schools  for  the  upper-middle  classes,  and  adver- 
tisements appeared  frequently,  informing  the  public  of  the  advantages  to  be 
gained  by  the  useful  arts  imparted  to  their  offspring  in  these  establishments. 
One  of  these  recounts  how  thirty-one  accomplishments  are  to  be  acquired,  such 
as  "  waxwork,  boning  fowls  without  cutting  the  back,  true  point  or  tape  lace, 
as  well  as  washing  Flanders  lace  and  point."  Foreign  laces  were  prohibited  ; 
English  laces  being,  of  course,  not  included  in  this  prohibition. 

With  the  records  of  1778,  all  mention  of  lace-making  in  Scotland  ceased.  No 
lace  is  made  at  Hamilton  now,  net-work  for  veils  and  scarfs  having  taken  its  place. 
Perhaps  this  is  not  to  be  regretted,  for  the  Hamilton  lace  never  had  any  artistic 
value  ;  it  was  made  of  coarse  thread,  a  weary  iteration  of  the  old  lozenge  pattern 
of  pre-historic  origin  being  the  Scotch  idea  of  beauty  and  suitability  for  design  in 
lace.  It  was  never  used  for  dress  purposes,  and  was  spoken  of  in  disparagement 
by  connoisseurs  as  "  only  Hamilton." 

Seaming  Lace  or  Spacing  Lace. 

This  is  not  a  special  make  of  lace.  The  term  is  applied  to  any  kind  used  for 
the  purpose  of  insertion  where  there  is  a  seam  in  the  linen  or  silk  with  which  it 
is  used.  The  term  frequently  appears  in  wardrobe  accounts  of  the  sixteenth 
and  seventeenth  centuries. 

Sherborne  Lace. 

In  1780,  when  blonde  lace  was  fashionable,  blondes  of  both  black  and  white 
were  made  in  large  quantities  for  export  at  Sherborne,  in  Dorset ;  but  since  the 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


197 


eighteenth  century  the  lace  trade  of  Sherborne  has  died  out,  giving  place  to  the 
button  trade. 

Shetland  Lace. 

This  lace  is  known  as  Trina  di  Lana  in  Italy,  where  it  is  much  more  used 
than  in  England.  It  is  a  bobbin  lace  made  of  the  finest  Shetland  wool 
instead  of  the  flax  or  silken  thread  with  which  most  lace  is  made.  Babies' 
shawls,  coverlets,  scarves,  etc.,  are  made  in  black  or  white  wool  ;  the  designs  are 


Shetland  Point  Lace,  called  in  Italy,  where  it  is  much  used,  Trina  di  Lana.  It 
is  made  of  fine  black  or  white  Shetland  wool  instead  of  the  flax  thread 
generally  used  for  lace-making.  Nineteenth  century. 

selected  from  simple  flax  point  designs,  and  the  same  stitches  are  used  as  in  flax 
thread  lace.  A  cordonnet  or  cord  of  chain  stitch  is  filled  in  with  a  thick  point 
lace  stitch ;  sometimes  detached  sprigs  are  cleverly  made,  and  are  afterwards 
joined  with  bars  in  the  true  point  method. 

Silk  Blonde  Laces. 

These  are  made  in  Spain.  Barcelona  produces  fine  black  or  white  blondes, 
the  characteristic  of  such  lace  being  the  thick  heavy  designs  upon  the  light  net 
grounds.  In  the  middle  of  the  present  century  the  trade  in  this  lace  gave 
employment  to  about  thirty  thousand  women  and  children,  who  carried  out  the 
orders  in  their  own  homes. 

These  silk  laces  do  not  equal  those  made  at  Bayeux  and  Chantilly :  the 
ground  is  not  so  firm,  nor  is  the  pattern  so  regular — probably  because  there  is  no 
central  factory  to  give  out  the  designs  and  supervise  the  work  of  the  peasantry. 
Early  in  the  century  Barcelona  made  white  thread  laces  with  floral  designs  which 
show  their  Flemish  origin. 

Silk  blonde  lace  is  now  also  made  in  Venice,  and  by  machinery  in  Lyons. 


198 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Spacing   Lace. 

Another  name  for  Seaming  Lace. 

Spanish  Guipure. 

A  name  given  indifferently  to  Spanish  lace,  Honiton,  Irish,  or  Crochet  Point. 

Spanish  Laces. 

From  the  earliest  ages  laces  have  been  made  in  Spain,  the  first  types,  such 
as   cut-work,   lacis   or    darned   netting,   and   drawn-work,    being    all    extensively 

made  by  the 
religious  com- 
munities in  medi- 
aeval times  ;  gold 
and  silver  laces 
were  also  made. 
The  famous  Point 
d'Espagne  was  at 
the  zenith  of  its 
popularity  to- 
wards the  end  of 
the  seventeenth 
century.  Some 
authorities  con- 
tend that  its  name 
arose  more  from 
the  large  quanti- 
ties used  by  the 
Spanish  grandees 
and  supplied  by 
France  and  Italy, 
than  from  the 
manufacture 
being  of  Spanish 
origin.  Certain  it 
is  that  the  making 
of  gold  and  silver 
Point  d'Espagne 
was  much  in  the 
hands  of  the  Jews, 
and  after  their  ex- 
pulsion  from 
Spain  the  con- 
sumption of  this 
special  kind 
decreased  con- 
siderably, and  the 
home  manufac- 
ture in  Spain 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


199 


deteriorated,  so  much  so  that  the  Spanish  Government  found  it  necessary  to 
pass  a  law  prohibiting  the  importation  of  gold  laces  from  Lucca  and  Florence, 
except  such  as  were  necessary  for  ecclesiastical  purposes. 

It  is  strange  that  nearly  all  the  fine  thread  lace  points  of  Spain  were  made  for 
the  use  of  the  Church  alone,  and  it  was  not  until  the  dissolution  of  the  Spanish 
religious  houses  in  1830  that  its  beauty  and  artistic  value  could  be  judged. 
Then  it  was  seen  that  the  magnificent  needle-point  laces  rivalled  even  the 
Italian  and  Venetian  Points.  Not  only  were  there  heavy  laces  generally  known 
as  Spanish  Point,  but  pieces  of  the  very  finest  description  ;  "  so  exquisite,"  says 
Mrs.  Bury  Palliser,  "  that  they  were  unmistakably  the  work  of  those  whose  time 
was  not  money,  and  whose  devotion  to  the  Church  and  the  images  of  their  favourite 
saints  rendered  this  work  a  labour  of  love,  when  in  plying  their  needles  they  called 
to  mind  its  destination." 

Silk  blonde  lace  made  in  Spain  is  described  under  its  own  heading. 

Another  variety  of  Spanish  lace  is  black,  gaily  embroidered  in  coloured  silk 
and  gold  threads.  This  is  now  seldom  seen. 

Spider  Work. 

Embroidery  or  darning  upon  net. 


So  called  in  the  Middle  Ages. 


Stephani  Lace. 

A   kind  of  modern   point 
Princess  Stephani  of  Austria. 


lace  imitating    Venetian  Point,    and    named   after 
It  was  shown  at  the  Exhibition  in  Brussels  in  1880. 


Straw-plaited  Lace. 

The  two  varieties  of  straw-plaiting  executed  in  Italy  excel  any  that  is  made 
elsewhere  ;  that  of  Leghorn  and  the  various  districts  in  Tuscany  perhaps  hold  the 
first  place  for  the 
manufacture  of 
hat  sand  bonnets. 
A  large  amount 
of  skill  is  needed 
in  manipulating 
the  fibres,  as  the 
hats  and  bonnets 
at  Leghorn  are 
made  in  one 
piece,  which 
accounts  for 

.1     •  j.  Twisted  Border  of  Coloured  Straws,  held  together  by  white  silk  threads, 

2|  inches  wide  ;  eighteenth  century. 

ary      durability. 

There  is  in  the  Tuscan  fabric  no  twist  forming  a  ridge  which  makes  the  unequal 
surface  of  English  straw  work,  but  it  is  sewn  together  in  successive  rows  as  in 
the  English  method. 

The  straw  used  is  a  specially  fine  kind  of  wheat  straw,  and  the  light  buff  colour 
is  an  important  characteristic. 

The  origin  of  straw-plaiting  in  England  is  of  comparatively  recent   date,  it 


20O 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


having  been  introduced  only  about  a  century-and-a-half  ago.  It  has  reached  a 
high  state  of  perfection  in  Bedfordshire,  the  chief  seat  of  the  manufacture.  Women 
and  children  are  employed,  and  the  work  is  chiefly  carried  on  in  the  homes  of  the 
workers.  The  straw  "  braids,"  as  they  are  called,  are  made  into  long  lengths,  and 
afterwards  laid  successively  over  the  edges  of  the  first  plait  and  coiled  round,  the 
whole  being  kept  firm  by  stitching.  Specially  fine  needles,  called  "  straws,"  are 
used  for  uniting  the  plaits  or  lace,  in  order  to  avoid  splitting  the  fabric.  Two 
kinds  of  straws  are  used,  called  respectively  Red  Lanwas  and  White  Chittein  ; 
these  varieties  are  grown  in  the  Midland  and  Southern  counties. 

Much    straw-plaiting   is   done  at    Luton  ;   rye    straw    is   imported   from  the 
Orkney  Islands,  and  from  this  excellent  imitations  of  the  Tuscan  fabric  are  made. 

Other  countries  noted  for  artistic  straw-plaiting  and  delicate  varieties  which 
form  a  rude  kind  of  lace  are  Switzerland, 
Japan,  and  the  South  of  France. 

In  the  cantons  of  Fribourg  and 
Appenzell,  straw  lace-making  has  been 
brought  to  great  perfection.  Brazil  also 
produces  a  very  delicate  species  of  grass 
utilised  for  the  purpose  of  hat  and  bonnet 
making,  the  article  made  being  formed 
of  one  piece,  like  those  of  Leghorn. 

Suffolk  Lace. 

Bobbin-made  lace  of  little  artistic 
pretension.  The  designs  are  of  the 
peasant  Torchon  variety,  and  are  carried 
out  in  threads  of  varying  thickness, 
coarser  threads  being  frequently  used 
to  outline  the  pattern. 

Swedish  Laces. 

The  art  of  lace-making  was,  accord- 
ing to  tradition,  introduced  into  Sweden 
by  St.  Bridget,  who  died  in  1335.  His- 
tory tells  that,  in  the  Middle  Ages,  the 
nuns  at  Wadstena  "  Knit  their  lace  of 
gold  and  silk."  From  knitting  to  lace 
is  an  easy  transition.  At  the  suppres- 
sion of  the  monasteries  in  the  reign  of 
Charles  IX.,  a  few  nuns  too  old  and 
infirm  to  sail  with  their  sisters  to  Poland 
remained  in  Sweden  and  continued  their 
occupation  of  lace-making,  then  a  secret 
art.  The  patterns  of  Swedish  laces  are 
simple;  narrow  plaited  kinds  are  the 
most  usual.  Knotted  thread  lace  was 
made,  also  darned  net  and  cut-work,  Suffolk  Bobbin century*06 '  nineteenth 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE.  201 

which  were  called  Holesom.  This  last  is  still  much  used  by  the  Swedish 
housewives  for  adorning  their  household  linen.  A  common  kind  of  twisted 
thread  lace  resembling  Torchon  is  now  made  in  many  parts  of  Sweden,  chiefly 
by  the  peasants  for  home  consumption. 

Swiss  Lace. 

In  1572,  a  merchant  of  Lyons,  escaped  from  the  Massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew, 
concealed  himself  in  a  bale  of  goods  and  reached  Geneva  in  safety.  One  of  his 
descendants  took  the  opportunity,  when  the  revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes 
flooded  the  city  with  refugee  lace-makers,  to  gather  two  thousand  of  them  into  his 
service  and  set  up  a  factory ;  the  produce  of  this  industry  was  smuggled  back 
into  France,  to  the  great  profit  of  the  lace-makers,  and  much  to  the  annoyance  of 
Louis  XIV. 

Neufchatel  has  always  been  the  centre  of  the  trade  for  the  coarse  thread 
lace  made  by  the  Swiss  peasants  ;  a  manufacture  for  fine  qualities  resembling 
those  of  Flanders  was  also  set  up,  and  some  fine  work  done.  Pattern  books  for 
narrow  plaited  laces  of  gold  and  silver  thread  and  knotted  laces,  were  published  in 
Switzerland.  The  Sumptuary  laws  were  most  severe  in  the  country,  and 
considerably  handicapped  the  lace  industry,  so  that  it  gradually  died  out  at 
the  end  of  the  last  century;  though  in  1840  a  factory  was  established  at 
Geneva  for  making  a  kind  of  Brussels  bobbin  lace,  which  was  considered  good 
when  new,  but  it  was  found  that  the  thread  washed  thick,  and  there  is  little 
demand  for  it. 

Tambour  Lace. 

This  differs  from  Tambour  work  only  in  the  material  upon  which  it  is  done,  net 
being  used  as  a  ground  for  the  chain-stitch  outline  of  the  design,  instead  of  a  solid 
material.  Before  the  invention  of  sewing  machines,  hand-made  Tambour  lace 
was  made  in  Ireland,  where  it  is  called  Limerick  lace.  At  Coggeshall  and 
Nottingham  the  making  of  Tambour  lace  has  declined  considerably  since  the 
imitations  appeared  upon  the  market,  for  the  modern  sewing  machine  can  trace 
a  design  in  chain-stitch  upon  net  or  muslin  with  great  facility,  so  that  Tambour 
lace  is  now  little  esteemed. 

Tape  Lace. 

This  is  a  very  early  form  of  lace-making.  The  oldest  examples  of  Italy,  Spain 
and  Flanders  show  the  hand-made  tape  formed  into  designs,  and  held  in  place 
by  means  of  brides  or  bars.  Gradually  very  elaborate  designs  were  made,  and 
lace  stitches  employed  to  enrich  the  tape  pattern.  In  working  nearly  all  the 
seventeenth  and  eighteenth  century  coarse  laces,  tape  was  more  or  less 
employed. 

Tatting  Lace. 

This  knotted  lace,  made  by  means  of  a  small  shuttle  round  which  the  cord  or 
thread  is  wound,  and  by  means  of  which  knots  and  loops  are  worked,  has  been 
known  and  practised  for  over  a  century. 


2O2 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


The  French  name  for  this  work,  Frivolite,  refers  to  the  fragile  nature  of  the 
work,  which  is  lighter  and  more  lace-like  in  effect  than  any  other  kind  of  knotted 
lace.     Picots  and  pearls  are  used  as  in  point 
and   bobbin   laces,  and   Ragusa   points  are 
much  imitated   in   Ireland,   where  the  lace 
is  more   popular   than   in    other   countries. 
The  name  is  derived  from  tattie,  an  Indian 
matting    of    native    manufacture    which    it 
slightly  resembles. 

Tender  Lace. 

This  is  described  under  Danish  Lace. 

Torchon  Lace. 

A  bobbin  lace  known  in  the  sixteenth 
and  seventeenth  centuries  as  Beggars'  lace. 
It  resembles  Saxony  lace  in  design  and  style 
of  working.  A  loose  thread  is  used,  and 
the  ground  is  a  coarse  reseau.  It  is  largely 
used  for  common  purposes,  and  is  much  in 
demand  both  in  England  and  on  the  Con- 
tinent. It  is  made  by  the  peasants  in 
almost  every  country  in  Europe. 

Trina  di  Lana. 

The  Italian  name  for  Shetland  Lace, 
under  which  heading  it  is  fully  described. 

Trolle  Kant. 

An  old  bobbin  lace,  no  longer  made.  It 
was  manufactured  in  Flanders  in  the 

sixteenth,  seventeenth,  and  eighteenth  centuries.  The  name  of  this  lace  has  been 
corrupted  into  Trolly,  and  given  to  coarse  English  bobbin  laces  which  have  a 
thick  cordonnet. 

Trolly  Lace. 

A  bobbin  lace  made  in  Normandy,  Flanders,  and  England.  The  Trolly  lace 
industry  has  declined  considerably  since  the  introduction  of  the  machine-made 
lace.  Its  distinguishing  features  are  the  ground,  which  imitates  the  old  Trolle 
Kant  ground  of  Flanders,  and  the  thick  thread  cordonnet. 

Valenciennes  Lace. 

The  lace  manufacture  of  the  Department  du  Nord  dates  from  the  fifteenth 
century,  when  it  is  said  one  Pierre  Chauvin  commenced  the  bobbin  lace-making  of 
Valenciennes.  This  town  was  part  of  the  ancient  Flemish  Hainault,  and  was 
secured  to  France  by  conquest  and  treaty  in  1668-1678. 

When  first  the  lace  was  in  favour  it  had  such  serious  rivals  as  the  popular 
Brussels  Lille  and  Arras  laces,  but  Louis  XIV.  encouraged  the  industry,  and 
gradually  the  utility  and  excellent  wearing  qualities  of  the  lace  became  known. 


Tatting  Lace,  8$  inches  wide,  made  in 
Ireland  ;   late  nineteenth  century. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE. 


203 


Madame  du  Barry  constantly  mentions  Vrai  Valenciennes  in  her  accounts ; 
the  Vrai  Valenciennes  being  that  lace  made  in  the  town  itself.  It  was  said  that 
connoisseurs  could  detect  the  city-made  lace,  which  was  remarkable  for  beauty  of 


Early  Valenciennes  Bobbin  Lace,   Renaissance  design.      Louis  XIV.  encouraged  the 
growth  of  the  industry,  which  was  at  its  best  between  1720  and  1740. 

ground,  richness  of  design,  and  evenness  of  tissue;  this  evenness  was  caused 
by  the  city  lace-makers  working  in  damp  and  underground  cellars,  which  greatly 
facilitated  the  even  working  of  the  bobbins.  All  lace  not  made  in  Valenciennes 
itself  was  called  Fausse  Valenciennes;  this  name  included  the  work  done  in 
surrounding  villages  as  well  as  that  of  other  countries — it  is  but  an  exaggeration 
to  suggest  that  lace  commenced  in  the  town  and  finished  by  the  same  worker 
outside  the  walls  was  inferior. 

% 

After  the  French  Revolution,  when  so  many  lace-workers  fled,  Valenciennes 
lace  was  much  made  in  Belgium,  the  centres  of  the  trade  being  Alost,  Yrpes, 
Bruges,  Ghent,  Menin,  and  Courtrai,  and  the  work  produced  in  each  town  has 
a  distinctive  feature  in  the  ground.  That  made  in  Ghent  is  square-meshed,  the 
bobbins  being  only  twisted  two  and  a  half  times.  At  Ypres  the  ground  is  also 
square-meshed,  but  the  bobbins  are  twisted  four  times.  In  Courtrai  and  Menin 
the  grounds  are  twisted  three  and  a  half  times;  this  is  the  cheapest  kind.  In 
Bruges  the  ground  has  a  circular  mesh,  and  the  bobbins  are  twisted  three  times  ; 
this  is  the  variety  chiefly  known  in  England. 

The  pillow-made  Valenciennes  lace  of  the  present  day  is  not  nearly  so  elaborate 
as  the  old  production  ;  the  dotted  or  seme  style  of  design  is  usually  worked.  The 
labour  of  the  Vrai  Valenciennes  was  so  great  that  while  Lille  lace- makers  could 
produce  six  yards  per  day,  not  more  than  an  inch  and  a  half  could  be  made  by  a 
Valenciennes  worker  in  a  day  of  fourteen  hours.  The  cost  of  this  lace  was  in 
consequence  enormous  ;  a  pair  of  man's  ruffles  would  take  a  year  to  complete.  A 
piece  of  lace  made  throughout  by  the  same  person  always  commanded  a  higher 


204 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


price  if  the  fact  could  be   certified.     The  number  of  bobbins  required  sometimes 
reached  four  figures  ;    lace  two  inches  wide  required  at  least  three  hundred. 

The  earliest 
Valenciennes 
designs  are  very 
beautiful,  usually 
conventionalised 
flowers  and  scrolls 
made  in  thick  close 
stitch  with  grounds 
in  minute  circles, 
sometimes  sur- 
rounded  by  other 
circles.  The  late 

Border  of    French   Bobbin-made   Lace       a  Reseau       (Fauase 

Valenciennes),  2i  inches  wide  ;  eighteenth  century.  eighteenth    century 

pattern  s  betray 

their  Flemish  origin  ;    tulips,  carnations,  and  anemones  true  to  nature  are  seen. 
There  is  no  cordonnet  or  raised  outline  in  Valenciennes  lace. 

Venetian  Guipure. 

A  name  sometimes  given  to  Greek  Point,  under  which  heading  it  is  described. 

Venetian  Laces. 

There  is  little  doubt  that  to  Venice  belongs  the  honour  of  introducing  the 
invention  of  needle-made  laces  into  Europe,  and  it  is  likely  that  the  Italians 
learned  the  rudiments  of  the  art  from  the  Saracens  who  had  settled  in  Sicily. 
At  the  coronation  of  Richard  III.,  in  England,  "fringe  of  Venice  and  mantle 
laces  of  white  silk  and  Venice  gold  "  appear;  and  later  Elizabeth  of  York  pays 
sundry  sums  of  money  for  "  gold  of  Venice,  and  other  necessaries."  From 
that  time  onwards  there  are  occasionally  mentioned  "  partlets  knit  caul-fashion  of 
Venice  gold."  It  was  not  till  the  reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth  that  Italian  cut-work 
and  Venice  lace  came  into  general  use  in  England.  In  the  fifteenth  century  both 
point  and  bobbin  laces  were  first  made  in  Venice  ;  they  were  at  their  best  during, 
the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries,  and  were  worn  at  every  court  in  Europe, 
but  their  popularity  declined  from  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century,  for,  in 
1654,  Colbert  prohibited  their  importation  into  France,  in  order  that  the  lace 
manufactures  he  had  founded  in  Alen9on  and  other  parts  of  France  might  be 
protected.  The  French  laces,  though  at  first  only  imitations  of  the  Venice  points, 
gradually  developed  into  something  lighter  and  finer,  and  usurped  the  place  in  the 
taste  of  the  public  formerly  held  by  the  costly  and  heavy  Italian  points. 

At  this  time,  when  Alengon  and  Argentan  laces  were  the  favourites,  Argentella 
point  was  made  in  Venice ;  this  lace  resembles  Alenson,  except  that  the  cordonnet 
is  flat  instead  of  being  padded  and  raised. 

The  fine  needle-points  made  at  Brussels  also  helped  to  oust  the  Italian  laces, 
till  the  making  of  the  old  Venetian  points  became  almost  extinct,  and  it  is  only 
recently  that  the  taste  for  this  especial  kind  of  lace  has  revived. 


Linen  Collar,  with  border  and  broad  ends  of  Needle-point  Venetian  Lace  (Qros 
Point  de  Venise,  Punto  Tagliato  a  Foliami),  the  exquisite  quality  resembling 
ivory  carved  in  relief. 


A     DICTIONARY    OF    LACE.  205 

It  must  be  remembered  that  in  mediaeval  times  it  was  Venice  that  set  the 
fashions  for  all  the  courts  in  Europe  ;  silks,  satins,  brocade  laces,  and  all  other 
articles  of  luxury,  were  made  in  Italy,  and  it  was  not  till  a  considerably  later  date 
that  Paris  became  the  leader  of  the  modes.  Catherine  de'  Medicis  took  with  her  to 
France  the  fashion  of  wearing  costly  points,  and  for  many  years  needle-made  laces 
were  called  Points  de  Medicis  in  Paris. 

In  the  sixteenth  century,  when  Venice  lace  was  at  its  best,  it  was  the 
decoration  for  dress  on  all  occasions  throughout  Europe ;  it  was  used  for  eccle- 
siastical purposes  to  an  enormous  extent,  both  for  the  decoration  of  the  altars, 
the  saints  and  Madonnas,  and  also  on  the  priests'  vestments.  The  following 
were  the  kinds  of  laces  made  at  that  period  : — 

1.  Punto   a  Reticello,  or   Greek  lace. 

2.  Punto  Tagliato. — Cut-work. 

3.  Punto  in  Aria. — Open   lace  or  guipure,  worked  on  a  parchment    pattern 
without   mesh  net-work  ground,  the  sections  of  the  design  connected  by  bridges 
or  bars. 

4.  Punto  Tagliato  a  Fogliami. — Executed  like  Punto  in  Aria,  but  enriched  by 
the  outlines  being  in  relief  by  means  of  padding  threads.     Sometimes  this  most 
complicated  of  all  point  laces  is  worked  in  double  and  triple  relief,  and  exquisite 
stitches   in  infinite  variety   are  introduced    into   the   flowers  :    this  is   the    Rose 
or  Raised  Venice  Point,  the  Gros  Point  de  Venise,  the  Punto  a  Rilievo  so  much 
sought  after,  so   highly  prized.       This  lace   is  sometimes  made  in  silk,  such  as 
purple,  yellow,  or  cream  ;    the  designs  are  conventionalised  scrolls  and  flowers. 

5.  Punto  a  Groppo. — Knotted  lace,  like  the  Genoese  Macrame. 

6.  Punio  a  Maglia. — Lacis,  or   darned  netting,  much  used  for  curtains  and 
bed  furniture. 

Though  the  Punto  Tagliato  a  Fogliami  is  more  celebrated  than  any  other 
lace  made  in  Venice,  it  did  not  appear  until  all  the  arts  of  Venice  were  on  the 
decline,  at  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century.  This  lace  is  seen  in  perfection 
in  the  portraits  of  the  period  ;  the  engravings  of  the  Doge  Francesco  Morosini 
show  magnificent  specimens,  as  also  does  the  picture  of  the  Dogaressa  Quirini 
Valier  in  the  Civic  Museum  at  Venice.  This  lace  was  amongst  the  principal 
adornments  on  all  full-dress  occasions  in  Western  Europe  during  the  last  half  of 
the  seventeenth  and  the  early  part  of  the  eighteenth  centuries.  It  is  now  made 
at  the  needle-point  factory  at  Burano  in  all  its  old  beauty,  for  from  the  finest 
seventeenth  century  examples  are  sought  inspiration  in  the  designing,  and  the 
method  of  achieving  even  the  complicated  double  and  triple  relief  has  been 
re-discovered.  We  give  a  longer  description  of  this  lace  than  of  others  as  it 
is  considered  by  connoisseurs  to  be  the  chef  d'auvre  of  the  lace  industry,  and  by 
artists  and  cognoscenti  to  be  one  of  the  most  beautiful  productions  of  human  skill. 

Bobbin  lace  is  made  in  Venice  at  the  present  day,  as  well  as  fine  needle- 
points of  every  kind,  such  bobbin  varieties  as  Pelestrina  and  Chioggia,  besides  the 
beautiful  Polychromo  lace,  being  made  in  large  quantities.  It  is  interesting  to  see 
in  the  large  and  well-organised  lace  schools  of  Venice  the  busy  workers  in  this  most 
artistic  industry,  for  are  they  not  the  descendants  of  those  who,  two  centuries 


206  HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 

ago,  gave  to  the  world  the  masterpieces  in  lace  which  still  remain  to  show  us  the 
beauty  and  delicacy  of  seventeenth  century  needlework  ? 

Venezuelan  Lace. 

The  lace  work  made  at  Venezuela  with  drawn-thread  work  is  very  beautiful. 
It  is  executed  upon  cambric  or  linen,  the  threads  being  drawn  away  and  divided  ; 
but  instead  of  being  overcast,  it  is  buttonholed  with  plain  linen  thread.  Fine 
purse  silks  of  many  colours  are  used,  as  in  the  Oriental  embroideries. 

Wiltshire    Laces. 

Quantities  of  bobbin-lace  similar  in  design  and  workmanship  to  the  Devon- 
shire lace  of  the  period  were  at  one  time  made  in  Wiltshire,  the  end  of  the  seven- 
teenth century  being  the  best  period.  The  industry  lingered  on  in  Wiltshire  in  a 
depressed  condition  till  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century,  some  of  the  last 
workers  having  lived,  we  believe,  in  the  village  of  Charmouth. 

Yak  Lace. 

A  coarse  bobbin  lace,  made  in  Buckinghamshire  and  Northamptonshire,  of  wool 
obtained  from  the  yak.  The  designs  are  copied  from  silk  Maltese  guipure  and 
Greek  laces,  and  are  geometrical.  The  guipure  bars  are  ornamented  with  purls ; 
the  thick  parts  of  the  pattern  are  worked  in  cloth  stitch. 

Youghal  Lace. 

This  lace  is  also  called  Irish  Point.  The  lace-making  industry  is  carried  on 
in  the  convent  schools  of  New  Ross,  Kenmore,  Waterford,  Kinsale,  Killarney, 
and  Clonakilty,  but  that  produced  at  Youghal  is  the  best.  Old  Italian  laces  are 
carefully  copied,  and  some  new  stitches  have  been  invented. 

Ypres  Laces. 

These  are  mentioned  under  the  headings  Belgian,  Mechlin,  and  Valenciennes 
Laces. 

Zante  Lace. 

This  lace  is  identical  with  Greek  Point.  Its  manufacture  has  long  been 
discontinued,  though  it  is  still  possible  to  purchase  the  lace  in  the  Ionian  Isles. 


A  GLOSSARY   RELATING   TO    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


AFICOT. — The  French  name  of  an  instrument  used  in  polishing  the  raised 
portions  of  lace.  Lobster  claws  were  sometimes  employed  for  this  purpose. 

BARBE. — A  lace  tie  worn  by  men  and  women  in  Italy  and  France  during  the 
early  part  of  the  nineteenth  century. 

BARS. — The  connecting  threads  thrown  across  spaces  in  needle-point  and 
bobbin  laces.  They  are  also  called  Brides,  Brides  Claires,  Coxcombs,  Pearls  or 
Purls,  Legs,  and  Ties. 

BAUTA. — A  hood  of  black  lace,  worn 
by  both  men  and  women  in  Italy  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  specially  in  Venice. 
The  lace  covered  the  chin  up  to  the 
mouth. 

BEAD  EDGE. — A  simple  heading  for  Bead  Edge  or  Beading, 

pillow  lace,  also  known  as  Beading. 

BOBBINS. — The  small  elongated  wooden  or  bone  reels  on  which  the  thread  is 
wound  for  the  purpose  of  lace-making.  Occasionally  bobbins  in  England  are  to  be 
found  made  of  bone  instead  of  wood.  If  of  the  latter  material  they  are  frequently 
ornamented  with  tracery  by  means  of  pricking  the  surface  of  the  wood,  rubbing 
coloured  powder  into  the  holes,  and  then  polishing  the  whole  surface  with  beeswax. 
We  have  seen  examples  in  use  with  posies  and  the  name  of  a  loving  giver; 
decorated  sticks  or  bobbins  being  usually  the  gift  of  a  love-sick  swain. 

BRANCHING  FIBRES. — In  Honiton  and  other 
bobbin  laces,  where  sprigs  are  formed  separately 
from  the  ground,  the  chief  stems  in  the  leaves  are 
marked  with  branching  fibres. 

BRIDES  AND  BRIDES  CLAIRES. —The  same  as 
Bars.  The  connecting  threads  thrown  across  spaces 
in  needle-point  and  bobbin  laces. 

BRIDES  ORNEES. — Bars  ornamented  with  picots, 
loops,  or  pearls. 

BUTTONHOLE  STITCH. — One  of  the  chief  stitches 
in  needle-made  lace  ;  also  known  as  Close  Stitch, 
Point  None,  and  Punto  a  Feston. 

CARTISANE. — A  strip  of  parchment  or  vellum 
covered  with  silk,  or  gold  or  silver  thread,  used  to 
form  a  pattern. 


Branching  Fibres. 


208 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


CASCADE. — A  term  applied  to  a  trimming  of  lace,  folded  in  zig-zag  form. 

CENTRE  FIBRE.  —  A 
name  given  to  the  raised 
appearance  in  the  centre 
of  bobbin-made  leaves. 

CHAMP.  —  A  ground- 
work,described  under  Fond. 

CHANSONS  A  TOILE. — 

Ballads  composed  expressly  Brides 

for,     and     sung     by,     the 

maidens  in  a  household  while  working  at  their  lace  or  embroidery,  or  by  the 
peasants  as  they  work  in  their  cottage  homes  or  factories. 

CLOSE  LEAF. — In  Honiton  lace,  close 
leaf  sprigs  are  worked  in  cloth  stitch. 

CLOSE  STITCH. — A  name  sometimes 
given  to  Buttonhole  Stitch,  one  of  the  chief 
stitches  in  needle-point  lace. 

CLOSE  TREFOIL. — A  variety  of  Honiton 
sprig.  The  leaf  is  worked  in  lace  stitch, 
the  petals  in  cloth  stitch. 

CONTINUOUS  INNER  PEARL. — Used  in 
Honiton  and  other  braid  laces  as  an 
ornament  to  the  inner  side  of  any  leaf  that  is 
not  filled  with  stitches. 

CORDONNET. — The  outline  to  ornamental 
forms  or  patterns  in  lace. 

COURONNES. — Ornaments  to  the  cordon- 
net,  or  outlining  cord  used  in  needle-point 
lace.  These  are  frequently  worked  as 

decoration  to  the  cordonnet,  which  forms  the  edge  of  the  lace,  or  round  any 
raised  cordonnet  in  the  body  of  the  pattern.  When  in  the  latter  position  they 
are  known  as  Fleurs  Volantes,  and  take  the  place  of  Spines  and  Thorns. 

COXCOMBS. — A  name  sometimes  given  to  Bars ;  the 
connecting  threads  thrown  across  spaces  in  needle-point 
and  bobbin  laces. 

CROSS  BAR  OPEN. — A  stitch  used  in  bobbin  laces, 
chiefly  for  ornamenting  brides. 

CROWNS. — The  English  word  for  Couronnes,  the 
ornaments  to  the  cordonnet.  Crowns  are  more  fully  dealt 
with  under  Couronnes. 

CUT-WORK. — A  stitch  made  in  Honiton  guipure  to 
unite  the  pillow- made  sprigs. 

DENTELE. — The  French  term  for  a  scalloped  border. 

DESIGN.— The  pattern  in  lace  work,  as  distinguished  from  the  ground  or  footing. 

D'OYLEY. — A  small  mat  for  table  use  or  decoration. 


Couronnes,  or  Flenra  Volantes. 


Centre  Fibre. 


GLOSSARY. 


209 


Close  Leaf. 


Continuous  Inner  Pearl. 


DRESSED  PILLOW. — A  term  used  by  bobbin-lace 
makers  to  intimate  that  all  the  accessories  necessary  are 
in  their  proper  positions. 

ECRU. — A  French  term  for  the  colour  of  raw  silk  or 
unbleached  linen. 

EDGE. — There  are  two  edges  to  lace :  the  outer, 
which  in  trimmings  and  flounces  is  either  scalloped  or 
ornamented  with  picots ;  and  the  engrelure  or  footing, 
used  to  sew  the  lace  on  to  the  material  it  is  to 
decorate. 

EDGINGS. — Narrow  laces  used  to  trim  muslin  or 
cambric  frills. 

ELL. — An  English  ell  measures  45  inches,  having   been  fixed  at  that  length 
in  1101.     A  French  ell  is  54  inches;  a  Flemish  ell, 
27  inches;   a  Scotch  ell,  37-2  inches. 

EN  COQUILLE. — A  French  term  to  denote  a 
shell-shaped  lace  trimming,  which  is  laid  on  to  a 
garment  after  the  manner  of  a  succession  of 
scalloped  shells. 

EN  EVENTAIL. — A  French  term  denoting  fan- 
shaped  lace  trimming,  which  is  pleated  at  the  top 
and  hangs  so  that  it  flares  or  fans  at  the  bottom 
edge. 

ENGRELURE. — The  French  name  for  Footing  ;  it  is  also  called  Heading. 

EN  TOIL  AGE. — The 
French  term  for  a  plain 
mesh  ground  or  galloon. 

ENTREDEUX.  —  The 
French  term  for  insertion, 
whether  of  embroidery  or 
lace. 

FIL  DE  CREN. — A 
thick  and  heavy  outline 
or  cordonnet. 

FIL  DE  TRACE. — The 
name  by  which  the  out- 
lines of  needle-made  laces 
are  distinguished. 

FILLINGS. — A  word 
occasionally  used  for 
Modes  or  Jours.  Fancy 
stitches  employed  to  fill  in 

enclosed  spaces  in  needle-  Dressed  Pillow, 

point  and  bobbin  laces. 

FINGER. — A  measure  of  length  used  by  needlewomen ;    it  is  4!  inches. 

p 


2IO 


HISTORY     OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Fil  de  Trace. 


is  composed  of  the  filaments  of  the 
fibrous  portion  of  Linum  usitatissimum,  an  annual, 
native  of  Europe,  and  from  it  linen  thread  is  spun. 
That  of  Flanders  is  the  best  for  lace-making. 

FLEURS  VOLANTES. — Ornaments  worked  round 
a  raised  cordonnet  in  the  design  of  needle-point 
lace. 

FLOTS. — A  French  term  used  to  signify  suc- 
cessive loops  of  lace  overlapping  one  another  in 
rows. 

FLOUNCE. — A  term  used  to  signify  a  strip 
more  or  less  wide  to  be  gathered  or  pleated  on  one 
side  and  left  loose  on  the  other.  In  the  fourteenth 
century  it  was  called  a  Founce ;  in  the  reign  of 
William  and  Mary,  a  Furbelow,  a  corruption  of  Falbala,  the  Spanish  for  Flounce. 

FOND. — Identical  with  Champ,  Entoilage,  and  Treille.  The  ground-work  of 
needle-point  or  bobbin  lace  as  distinct  from  the  toile  or  pattern  which  it  surrounds 
and  supports.  Grounds  are  divided  into  Fonds  Claires,  Brides  Claires,  and 
Brides  Ornees.  The  Fonds  Claires  include  the  Reseau  or  net-patterned  grounds. 
Fond  de  Neige  is  also  called  CEil  de  Perdrix ;  it  is  occasionally  used  in  old 
Mechlin  lace. 

FOND  SIMPLE,  sometimes  called  Point  de  Lille,  is  the  finest,  lightest,  and  most 
transparent  of  all  grounds.  The  sides  of  the  meshes  are  not  partly  plaited  as  in 
Brussels  and  Mechlin,  nor  wholly  plaited  as  in  Valenciennes  and  Chioggia ;  but 
four  of  the  sides  are  formed  by  twisting  two  threads  round  each  other,  and  the 
remaining  two  sides  by  the  simple  crossing  of  the  threads  over  each  other.  The 
paragraph  on  Grounds  affords  further  information. 

FOOTING  OR  ENGRELURE. — A  narrow  lace  sewn  to  the  upper  edge  of  a  flounce 
or  border  of  lace,  in  order  to  attach  it  without  injury  to  the  garment  upon 
which  it  is  to  be  worn.  It  is  sometimes  called  Heading. 

FRAISE  OR  RUFF. — An  outstanding  neck  ornament,  first  used  by  Henri  II.  of 
France,  to  conceal  a  scar  on  his  neck. 

GARNITURE. — A  French  term  signifying  any  description 
of  decorative  trimming,  such  as  a  garniture  of  lace. 

GIMP. — (i)  The  pattern,  resting  upon  the  ground,  or 
held  together  by  brides  or  bars.  (2)  An  ornamental 
trimming  of  twisted  threads,  which  was  formerly  called 
Guipure.  (3)  In  Honiton  the  word  denotes  the  coarse 
glazed  thread  used  to  raise  certain  edges  of  the  design.  . 

GINGLES. — A  name  given  in  Buckinghamshire  to  the 
bunches  of  coloured  beads  hung  on  to  the  bobbins  by  means 
of  brass  wire,  in  order  to  give  extra  weight  and  so  increase 
the  tension  of  the  threads. 

GODERONNE,  GouDRONNE. — A  fluted  edge,  derived  from 

the    fluted  edge    of  the  silversmiths   and   not   from   goudron  Gimp  (No,  3). 

(pitch  or  starch),  the  stiffening  of  lace. 


GLOSSARY. 


211 


Fond,  showing  mode  of    Working  Needle-point  Ground  and 
Outline  Threads  of  Pattern. 

GODET. — A  flounce  whose  upper  edge  is  shorter  than  the  lower,  this  effect 
being  achieved  by  the  shaping  of  the  flounce  itself,  not  by  the  frilling-up  of  the 
material  to  make  it. 

GRAS  POINT. — The  French  term  for  Cross-stitch. 

GROPPO. — An  Italian  term  for  a  knot  or  tie. 

GROUNDS. — The  grounds  of  laces  are  divided  into  two  classes,  one  being  called 

P    2 


212 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE, 


Bobbin-made  Ground 
(much  enlarged). 


Hexagonal  Reseau  Net  Ground 
Bobbin-made. 


the  Bride,  the  other 
the  Reseau.  The 
Bride  ground  is 
formed  with  plain 
or  ornamental  bars 
worked  across  the 
open  spaces  left  in 
the  design,  in  order 
to  connect  the  orna- 
ments forming  the 
pattern.  A  Bride 
ground  may  be 
worked  by  the 
needle  or  with  the 
bobbins.  The  Re- 
seau ground  is  a 
net  made  with  the 
needle  or  with  the 
bobbins,  and  con- 
nects the  ornaments 
of  the  design  in  the 
same  way  as  does 
the  Bride  ground. 
There  are  many 
varieties  of  the 
same,  such  as  Dame 
Joan,  Hexagonal  or 
Honeycomb,  and 
Star  Grounds. 

Several  illustrations  GROUNDS. 

of  grounds  are  given  on  page  88. 

GRUPPO. — An  Italian  term  for  a  knot  or  tie. 

GUIPURE.— A  lace-like  trimming  of  twisted  threads.  The  word  is  now  used  to 
loosely  describe  many  laces  of  coarse  pattern.  Guipure  d'Art  is  the  name  given  to 
modern.  Darned  Netting. 

HALF-WHEELS.— Ornamental  bars  used  to  connect  the  heavier  portions  of  lace. 

HEADING.— A  term  sometimes  used  instead  of  Footing  or  Engrelure. 

HONEYCOMB. — A  variety  of  Ground. 

INCREASE  WIDTHS.— A  term  used  in  bobbin  lace- making,  when  it  is  necessary 
to  enlarge  the  pattern. 

INNER  PEARL.— Ornamental  loops  in  Honiton  lace,  worked  round  an  opening 
in  the  centres  of  the  lace  patterns. 

INSERTION.— Strips  of  lace  or  embroidered  muslin  or  cambric,  having  the 
edge.s  on  each  side  alike. 

JABOT.— A  French  term  originally  signifying  frilling  or  ruffles  on  a  shirt ; 
now  used  for  any  decorative  neck  frill  on  ladies'  dresses. 


Hexagonal  Ground  in  course  of 
Making  on  the  Pillow  with 
Bobbins  (enlarged). 


Mechlin  Circular  Ground,  in  course  of 
Making  on  the  Pillow  with  Bobbins 
(enlarged). 


GLOSSARY. 


213 


JOURS. — A  term  used  indifferently  with  Modes  and  Fillings  for  the  fancy 
stitches  used  to  fill  in  enclosed  spaces  in  needle-point  and  bobbin  laces. 

JUPE. — The  skirt  of  a  dress. 
JUPON. — The  skirt  of  a  petticoat. 

KERCHIEF. — A  handkerchief.  A 
square  of  linen  or  cambric,  sometimes 
employed  by  women  to  cover  the  head. 
Lace  trimmings  to  handkerchiefs  came 
first  into  fashion  in  England  in  the 
reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth. 

KNOT. — (i)  In  bobbin  lace,  a  twist  Half- Wheels, 

or  knot  in  the  thread.  (2)  A  complication 

of  threads  in  lace  secured  by  interlacing  the  ends  together.      Knots  are  employed 
in  fringe-making  and  in  coarse  lace,  such  as  macrame. 

LACE  TOKENS. — These  were  given  to  lacemakers  in  payment  for  their  work, 
and  at  the  end  of  the  last  century  were  regarded  as  legitimate  currency. 

LACET  POINT. — A  stitch  made  in  Honiton  Guipure  to  unite  the  pillow-made 
sprigs. 

LAPEL. — A  term  signifying  the  lapped  or  turned-over  corner  of  the  breast  of 
a  coat  or  bodice. 

LAPPET,  OR  TAB. — The  lace  pendants  of  a  woman's  head-dress,  worn  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  and  still  a  part  of  the  Court  dress  of  the  day  in  England 
and  other  European  countries. 

LAWN. — A   delicately-woven  linen,  originally  of  French  manufacture,  intro- 
duced into  England  in  the  reign  of  Queen 
Elizabeth. 

LEAD  WORKS  OR  LERD  WORKS. — Terms 
used  to  indicate  Modes  or  Fillings.  Fancy 
stitches  employed  to  fill  in  enclosed  spaces  in 
needle-point  and  bobbin  laces. 

LEAVES  DIVIDED. —  This  term  denotes 
leaves  worked  with  different  stitches  in 
Honiton  Lace. 

LEGS. — The  same  as  Bars.  The  con- 
necting threads  thrown  across  spaces  in 
needle-point  and  bobbin  laces. 

LINE. — The  flax  prepared  for  spinning 
before  it  has  been  sorted,  according  to  the 
various  degrees  of  fineness. 

LINGERIE. — A  French  term  for  cambric 
and  linen  under-garments. 

MANCHETTE. — A  diminutive  of  the  French  word  manche — a  sleeve. 

MANTEAU.— The  French  word  for  a  cloak  or  loose  external  covering. 

MANTLE. — An  outer  cloak  slightly  fitting  to  the  figure. 

MATH  OR  MAT.— The  closely-plaited  portions  of  flowers,  or  leaves,  in  bobbin- 
made  lace  ;  also  the  closely-worked  portion  of  any  lace. 


Modes  or  Fillings. 


2I4 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


Picots,  (No.  2)  on  Bars. 


MECHLIN   GROUND. — Of  this  there  are  two  kinds,  the  circular  and  hexagonal. 
Both  are  used  in  Brussels  bobbin  lace  as  well  as  in  Mechlin  laces. 

MESHES. — (i)  In  netting,  this  word  denotes 
a  completed  loop.  (2)  In  bobbin  and  needle-point 
lace  it  signifies  the  threads  that  form  a  net- 
pattern  ground. 

MITTENS.  —  Gloves  without  fingers,  having 
an  opening  for  the  thumb. 

MODE. — A  French  term  signifying  the  fashion 
in  dress. 

MODES  OR  JOURS. — Fillings:  fancy  stitches 
employed  to  fill  in  enclosed  spaces  in  the  designs 
of  both  bobbin  and  needle-point  laces.  They  are 
also  called  Lead  Works  and  Lerd  Works. 

MULL  MUSLIN. — A  thin  and  soft  variety  of 
muslin,  not  dressed  with  any  kind  of  stiffening. 

NAPERY. — House  linen  ;  especially  applied  to 
table  linen. 

NEEDLE. — A  pointed  instrument,  sharp  at  one  end,  and  perforated  at  the  other 
to  receive  the  thread  which  it  is  designed  to  draw  through  any  textile. 

CEiL  DE    PERDRIX. — A  variety  of  ground   sometimes  found  in  old   Flemish 
Point  and  Mechlin  laces. 

OPEN  BRAID. — One  of  the  stitches  used  in  bobbin  lace-making. 

OPEN  CROSS  BAR. — WThen  the  bars 
which  connect  the  different  parts  of  modern 
needle-point  lace  cross  each  other  they  are 
so-called. 

OPEN  DOTS. — Holes  made  in  bobbin 
lace  in  order  to  lighten  any  part  of  the 
design. 

OPEN  FIBRE. — A  kind  of  bar  used  in 
Honiton  lace-making  to  form  open  centres 
to  various  parts  of  the  pattern,  such  as  the 
open  work  in  the  centres  of  leaves. 

OPEN  WORK. — A  word  applied  in- 
differently to  embroidery,  lace-making, 
knitting,  netting,  cut-work,  and  crochet,  and 
signifying  the  interstices  between  the 
several  portions  of  close  work. 

OPUS. — The  ancient  name  for  a  work 
of  any  kind. 

ORPHREY.  — The  broad  band  or  clavi 
that  adorns  the  priest's  alb;  it  was  used 
also  to  border  the  robes  of  knights. 

ORRIS.— A  corruption  of  Arras.     The  term  is  used  now  to  denote  galloon  for 


Picots  used  to  enrich  Needle-point  Lace. 


GLOSSARY. 


215 


upholstering  purposes.     In  the  eighteenth  century  it  was  applied  to  laces  woven 
in  gold  and  silver. 

OUVRAGE. — French  term  for  work. 

PALL. — The  covering  of  a  coffin. 

PARAMENT  OR  PAREMENT. — A  cuff  sewn  upon  the  outside  of  a  sleeve. 

PARFILAGE  OR  RAVELLINGS. — Woik  fashionable  in  the  eighteenth  century, 
especially  at  the  Court  of  Marie  Antoinette.  The  object  of  the  work  was  to 
obtain  from  old  and  tarnished  gold  laces,  braids,  and  sword  knots  the  valuable 
metal  threads  woven  into  them,  to  sell  to  the  gold-beaters. 

PARURE. —  A  French  term  denoting  a  set  of  collar  and  cuffs. 

PASSEMENT. —  Until  the  seventeenth  century,  laces,    braids   and  gimps   were 
called  Passements  a  1'Aiguille ;  bobbin  laces,  Passements  au  Fuseaux  ;  and  laces 
with  indented  edges,  Passements  a  Dentelle. 
At    present  the   word   denotes   the  pricked 
pattern     on    parchment    upon    which    both 
needle-point  and  bobbin  laces  are  worked. 

PASSEMENTERIE. — The  old  name  for 
lace-workers  ;  the  word  is  now  used  for  all 
kinds  of  fringes,  ribbons,  and  gimp  for  dress 
trimmings. 

PEARLS  OR  PURLS. — The  same  as  Bars. 
The  connecting  threads  thrown  across 
spaces  in  needle-point  and  bobbin  laces. 

PEARL  EDGE  OR  PURL  EDGE. — A  narrow 
thread  edge  of  projecting  loops,  used  to  sew 
upon  lace  as  a  finish  to  the  edge. 

PEARLIN  OR  PEARLING.  —  The  name 
used  in  Scotland  in  the  seventeenth  century 
to  denote  lace. 

PICOT. — (i)  The  French  term  for  a  prick, 
as  with  a  needle,  used  in  lace-making.     (2)  A  minute  loop  or  ornament  used   in 
needle-made  or  bobbin  lace  to  add  enrichment  to  an  outline  leaf,  flower,  or  bar. 

PIN. — An  instrument  used  for  the  temporary  attachment  of  one  piece  of 
material  to  another.  Sharpened  bones  were  used  in  bobbin  lace-making  before 
the  sixteenth  century,  when  the  modern  pin  was  invented  ;  hence  the  term  Bone 
Lace. 

PIN  WORK.— Also  known  as  Couronnes,  Crowns,  Spines,  Thorns,  and  Fleurs 
Volantes.  In  needle-point  lace,  it  is  used  to  lighten  the  effect  of  straight  edges. 

Pizzo. — The  Italian  term  for  lace,  especially  used  in  Genoa. 

PLAIN  EDGE. — An  edge  in  bobbin  lace  undecorated  with  loops  or  pearls. 

PLIS. — The  French  term  for  folds. 

PLY.— A  term  signifying  a  single  untwisted  thread. 

POINT. — The  French  term  for  stitches  of  every  description.  When  the 
word  is  prefixed  to  lace,  it  means  lace  of  fine  quality,  whether  bobbin-made  or 
needle-point. 


Pin  Work  in  Needle-point  Lace. 


2l6 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


POINT  DE  CHANT. — A  bobbin  lace  ground,  also  known  as  Point  de  Paris 
ground.  It  has  a  hexagon  and  triangular  mesh  alternately.  It  is  still  used  in 
making  black  lace. 

POINT  DE  LILLE. — This  is  described  under  Fond  Simple. 

POINT  DE  PARIS. — Another  name  for  Point  de  Chant. 

POINT  DE  RACCROC. — The  French  name  for  Raccroc  Stitch,  which  is  used  by 
lace-makers  to  join  together  reseau  grounds. 

POINT  NONE. — Another  name  for  But- 
tonhole Stitch,  one  of  the  chief  stitches  in 
needle-made  lace. 

POINT  PLAT. — The  French  term  for 
Flat  Point,  the  name  given  to  lace  executed 
without  a  raised  cordonnet  or  outline  cord. 

POKING  STICK. — An  iron  tool  which 
was  heated  in  the  fire  and  helped  to 
arrange  with  accuracy  the  folds  in  a  ruff. 
Queen  Elizabeth  paid  her  blacksmith, 
Thomas  Labric,  the  sum  of  five  shillings  in 
1592  for  poking  sticks. 

PRICKED. — The  term  used  in  pillow 
lace-making  to  denote  the  special  marking 
out  of  the  pattern  upon  parchment. 

PRICKER. — A  short  instrument  used  in 
pattern  to  receive  the  pins. 

PUNTO  A  FESTON. — The  Italian  term  for  Buttonhole  Stitch,  one  of  the  chief 
stitches  in  needle-made  lace. 

PURLS. — Another  name  for  Bars.  The  connecting  threads  thrown  across 
spaces  in  needle-point  and  bobbin  laces. 

PURLINGS. — A  stitch  used  in  Honiton  Guipure  to  unite  the  bobbin-made 
sprigs. 

QUILLINGS. — Plaits  of  lace,  tulle,  or 
ribbon,  sewn  down  so  that  the  edge  opens 
in  flute- like  folds. 

QUINTAIN. — A  fine  lawn  used  as  a  back- 
ground in  cut-work,  so  called  from  the 
French  town  in  which  the  finest  quality  was 
made. 

RACCROC  STITCH. — Also  known  as  Point 

de  Raccroc  and  Rucroc.      A  stitch  used  by  lace-makers  to  join  together  reseau 
grounds. 

RAISED  FLOWER. — In  bobbin  lace  this  flower  is  worked  upon  the  cushion, 
commencing  with  the  centre  petals.  By  the  tension  of  some  of  the  stitches 
the  raised  effect,  characteristic  of  Devonia  lace,  is  gained. 

RAISED  WORK. — In  bobbin  lace  this  term  denotes  the  raised  edge  worked 
down  one  side  of  leaves  and  flowers.  Honiton  and  Duchess  each  have  occasionally 
raised  work,  which  heightens  the  effect  of  the  lace  considerably. 


Plain  Edge. 

bobbin   lace  to   prick 


holes  in  the 


Pricked  Pattern. 


GLOSSARY. 


217 


RAVELLINGS. — Another  name  for  Parfilage. 

RESEAU. — (i)  Identical  with  Rezel  and  Rezeuil.  A  net-pattern  mesh  or 
honeycomb  ground,  made  either  with  the  needle  or  with  bobbins.  (2)  A  stitch 
made  in  Honiton  Guipure  to  unite  the  bobbin-made  sprigs. 

RESEAU   ROSACE. — The  name  given  to  the  reseau  ground  in  Argentan  lace. 

REZEL,  REZEUIL. — Terms  used  indifferently  with  Reseau  for  the  groundwork 
of  lace,  whether  worked  with  the  needle  or  with  bobbins. 

ROBING. — A  flounce-like  trimming   attached   to 
the  front  of  a  skirt. 

ROUISSAGE. — The   process   of  steeping   the  flax 
preparatory  to  its  being  spun  for  lace-making. 

ROUND    PILLOW. — The  kind  generally   used   in 
Devonshire  for  bobbin  lace. 

RUCHE. — A  French  term  for  a  quilled  or  a  goffered 
strip  of  lace. 

RUCROC. — A  special  variety  of  stitch  used  to  join 
together  reseau  grounds. 

RUFF. — The  same  as  Fraise  (the  fold  or  outstanding  frill  of  longish  hair 
round  the  neck  of  a  calf),  from  which  the  idea  of  the  neck  ruff  was  taken. 

RUFFLES. — Frills  worn  round  the  wrist.  In  the  time  of  the  Tudors,  they 
were  called  Hand  Ruffs. 

RUNNERS. — The  name  by  which  the  bobbins  which  work  across  a  pattern 
in  bobbin  lace  are  known. 

SAM  CLOTH. — An  old  term  denoting  a  Sampler. 

SAMPLERS. — These  were  in  use  during  the  sixteenth  century,  when,  on 
account  of  the  scarcity  and  high  price  of  pattern  books,  the  earliest  patterns 


Raised  Flower. 


Round  Pillow  dressed  with  Pattern,  Bobbins,  Pin-cushion,  and  the  Lace 
in  process  of  Making. 


2l8 


HISTORY    OF    HAND-MADE    LACE. 


of  drawn-work,  cut-work  and  Reticellas  were  copied  upon  Sam  cloths  by  those 
who  could  have  access  to,  but  were  not  rich  enough  to  buy,  books  of  lace 
patterns.  Later  they  were  used  not  only  as  a  means  of  perpetuating  a  pattern, 


An  Eighteenth  Century  Sampler. 

but  also  to  show  the  skill  of  the  worker.  Representations  in  coloured  silks  of 
elaborate  borders,  lettering,  animals,  figures,  insects  and  buildings  are  frequently 
to  be  met  with  in  a  good  state  of  preservation. 

SCARF. — A  long  straight  length  of  lace  to  wear  round  the  throat,  waist,  or 
shoulders,  finished  all  round  with  a  border. 

SEME.— A  French  term  for  sewn  or  powdered  designs  of  dots,  tears  or  sprigs. 

SETTING  STICKS. — Tools  of  wood  or  bone,  formerly  used  in  starching  and 
fluting  ruffs. 

SMOCK — (i)  A  linen  shirt  worn  by  men  or  women,  frequently  ornamented 
with  embroidery  or  cut-work.  (2)  The  old  English  term  for  shift,  shirt,  or 
chemise. 

SPINES. — Long  straight  points  used  to  enrich  raised  cordonnets. 

SPRIG. — A  term  used  to  denote  a  detached  piece  of  lace  which  is  afterwards 
applique  on  to  a  net  foundation,  or  joined  with  bars  so  as  to  form,  with  other 
sprigs,  a  compact  material. 

STAR  GROUND. — A  variety  of  Ground,  mentioned  under  that  heading. 

STARCH. — A  fluid  used  for  stiffening  lace  or  cambric.  It  was  first  known  in 
England  at  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century,  when  the  wife  of  a  Dutchman  brought 


GLOSSARY. 


219 


the  secret  of  its  use  from  Holland  and  was  patronised  by  Queen  Elizabeth.  Starch 
was  at  first  looked  upon  as  having  an  uncanny  power  and  was  called  "  devil's 
broth,"  but  its  utility  in  stiffening  the  enormous  ruffs  of  the  period  was  admitted. 

STEM  STITCH. — A  stitch  used  in  Honiton  lace.  There  are  three  kinds  of  Stem 
Stitch  :  Beginner's  Stem,  Buckle  Stem,  and  Stem  Stitch  proper. 

STRAND  GROUND.— Used  to  connect  Honiton  sprays  ;  it  is  formed  of  irregular 
bars. 

STREAK  STITCH. — In  hand-made  lace  the  veins  of  leaves  are  sometimes 
indicated  with  an  open  line  called  Streak  Stitch. 

TAB.— Another  name  for  Lappet,  under  which  heading  it  is  described. 

THORNS. — Identical  with  Spines  and 
Pin-work.  Long  straight  points  used  to 
enrich  cordonnets. 

TIES. —  The  same  as  Bars.  The  con- 
necting threads  thrown  across  spaces  in 
needle-point  and  bobbin  laces. 

TOILE. — The  name  for  the  substance 
of  the  patterns  of  lace  as  distinct  from  the 
ground. 

TREILLE. —  (i)  The  name  by  which  the  reseau  grounds  of  needle-point  and 
bobbin  laces  are  distinguished  from  the  pattern  they  surround.  (2)  The  general 
term  for  the  ground  or  reseau  of  lace  throughout  Belgium. 

WIRE  GROUND.— Sometimes  used  in  Brussels  lace.  It  is  made  of  silk,  with  its 
net-patterned  meshes  partly  raised  and  arched,  and  is  worked  separately  from  the 
design,  which  is  sewn  on  to  it  when  completed. 


Specimens  of  Needle-point  Toile 
(much  enlarged). 


INDEX. 


Adapting  lace,  82. 

Adda,  Marquis  G.  d',  on  old  lace,  98. 
Adelaide,  Queen,  Honiton  lace  for,  52,  170. 
Advantages  of  the  lace  industry  for  England, 

55- 

Aficot,   207. 

Age  of  lace,  judging,  89. 
Aix-la-Chapelle,  Treaty  of,  114. 
Alagoas,  Brazil,   125,  126. 
Alb,  the,  57,  214. 

Argentan,  portrait  of  Pontiff  in,  59. 

Point  d'Angleterre,  61. 

Point  de  Flandre,  41. 

Trimmed  with  needle-point  lace,  60. 

Valenciennes,   59. 
Albs  at  Notre  Dame,  Paris,  57. 
Albissola,   157. 

Aloe  lace  made  at,  22,  no. 
Alenches,   116. 
Alenpon  lace,   90,   107. 

Bayeux  lace,  116. 

Book  on,  103. 

Border  of,   107. 

Chain  pattern,   156. 

Corsage  drapery,  37. 

Cravat,  37. 

Designs  corresponded   with   style    of    the 
period,  no. 

Extravagant  prices  for,  108,   109. 

Factory  founded  by  Colbert,  28,   108. 

Imperial  layette  of,   109. 

Judging,  109. 

Modern,  no. 

Most  costly  dress  ever  made,  58. 

Napoleon  I.'s  efforts,  46. 

Napoleonic  cypher  on,  46,  49. 

Paten-cover,  58. 

Venetian  instructors  in,   107. 

Winter  lace,  43,  107. 


Alice,  Princess,  wedding  dress  of,  170. 

Aloe  lace,   lio. 

Alost,  155. 

Altar  hangings,  58,  60. 

Alva,  persecutions  of  Duke  of,   146,  159. 

Alvin,  L.,  on  old  lace,  98. 

M.,  publications  of,  97. 
American  market  for  German  laces,  51. 
Ampthill,  117. 
Amsterdam,  145. 
Anglo-Saxon  embroidery,  6. 

Gold  thread,  161. 

Nuns'  work,  6. 
Angouleme,  Duchess  of,   108. 
Annaberg  factory,   15,   159. 
Anne,  Duchess  of  Hamilton,   196. 
Anne,  Queen  of  England,  40,   132,  181. 
Anne,  Queen,  wife  of  James  I.,  32. 
Anne  of  Austria,  27,  28  151. 
Annunciation,  Antwerp  lace  design  represent- 
ing, in. 
Anspach,  160. 
Anti-Gallican  Society,  44. 
Antique  laces,  2,  3. 
Antwerp  lace,   no. 

Brussels,   in. 

Lille,   in. 

P.^t  pattern,  in. 

Thread,   181,   182. 
Appenzell  peasant  laces,  71. 

Straw-plaiting,  200. 
Appliqu6  laces,   in. 

Limerick  lace,  178. 

Sleeve-trimming,  nineteenth  century,  53. 
Apron,  disappearance  of  lace,  44. 
Aprons  worn  by  Roman  Catholic  bishops,  58. 
Arab  network,  5. 
Arabia's  commerce  with  Italy,  5. 
Arabic  inscription  in  drawn  linen  work,  5. 

Needlework,  4. 


222 


INDEX. 


Argentan  lace,  112,  113. 

Alb  at  Notre  Dame,  Paris,  56. 

Bride  picotee  a  speciality  of,  113. 

Factory  refused  to  Mme.  Boislannay,  44. 

Point  de  France,  113. 

Pontiff  in  alb,  59. 

Venetian  influence  on,  113. 

Winter  lace,  43. 
Argentella  point,  114. 
Ariege  peasant  laces,  73. 
Armenian  women's  dress,  5. 
Armstrong,  Mrs.  Rachel,  prize  awarded  to,  171. 
Arranging  collection,  90,  91. 
Arras  laces,  28,  51,  114,  156. 

at  George  I.'s  coronation,  115. 

Mignonette,  182. 
Asbestos  lace,  115. 
Asia  Minor,  origin  of  lace  in,  4. 
Atterbury,    Bishop,    lace   smuggled    in    coffin 

of,  79. 

Aubrey,  Felix,  on  old  lace,  98. 
Augusta,  Princess,  marriage  of,  79. 
Aurillac,  28,  115,  162. 
Auriphrygium,  60. 
Austrian  bobbin  lace,   115. 

Laces,  51. 

Austro-Hungarian  lace,  115. 
Auvergne  laces,   115,  175,  180. 

Mignonette,  182. 

Plaited,  186. 
Auxerre,  178. 
Ave  Maria  design,  149,  184. 

Lace,  72,  116. 
Axminster,  147. 

B 
Baby  lace,  Bedfordshire,  117. 

Buckinghamshire,  132. 

Shetland,  197, 
Baden  peasant  laces,  69. 
Bag,  ancient  Egyptian,  6. 
Bain,  equipage  de,  in  the  eighteenth  century, 

38,  160. 
Ballades  for  lace-makers,  17,  96,  100,  208. 

By  Randegger,  too. 
Baptism  suits,  61. 
Barante,  M.  de,  17. 
Barbara,     sister    of    the    King    of    Portugal, 

marriage  of,  58. 
Bar  be,  207. 

Barcelona  aloe  lace,  158. 
Barcelona  blonde  net,  121. 
Barcelona  silk,  180. 
Barcelona  silk  blonde  laces,  197. 
Bar-joining,  89. 


Barry,  Mme.  du,  203. 

Bars,  207. 

Basing,  32. 

Bassano,  painting  by,  13. 

Bath  Brussels  lace,  169. 

Bath  equipage  in  the  eighteenth  century,  38, 160. 

Bauta,  207. 

Bavaria,  159. 

Bayeux  laces,  116. 

Black  silk,  120. 

Nineteenth  century,  47. 

Peasant  laces,  69. 
Bazzoli,  portrait  of,  61. 
Beachampton,  132. 
Bead  edge,  207. 
Beading,  207. 
Beads  on  bobbins,  210. 
Bed  furniture,  nineteenth  century,  46,  47.  . 
Bedfordshire  lace,  116. 

Baby  lace,  117. 

English  Lille,  154. 

Maltese,  180. 

Pedlars  in,  76. 

Plaited,  186. 

Regency  point,  193. 
Bedfordshire  straw-plaiting,  200. 
Bed-trimmings  in  the  eighteenth  century,  38. 
Beer,  148,  167. 
Bees  on  Alencon  lace,  49. 
Beggar's  lace,  117,  163,  202. 
Beginner's  stem  stitch,  219. 
Belev,  196. 

Belgian  laces,    117.      These  are  fully  indexed 
under  their  respective  headings.   . 

Antwerp,  no. 

Bobbin  sprigs  on  machine-made  net,  51. 

Brussels,  127. 

Dogs  used  for  smuggling,  78. 

Eighteenth  century,  43. 

Emigration  of  workers  prevented,  118. 

English  thread  for,  128. 

Flanders  point,  117. 

Machine-made  net,  run  and  embroidered 
in  flax  thread,  46. 

Mechlin,  181. 

Petit  motif,  186. 

Point  d'Angleterre  (so-called),  36,  127 

Schools  for,  118. 

Seventeenth  century,  31. 

Smuggling  into  France,  78. 

Tape,  118. 

Treille,  219. 

Trolle  kant,  155,  202. 

Valenciennes,  202. 


INDEX. 


223 


Belgium,  pedlars  in,  76. 

Belin,  Antoine,  designs  by,  98. 

Bell-shaped  sleeves  in  rose  point,  55. 

Benoit,  Rene,  9. 

Berlin,  factories  at,  160. 

Bibliography  of  lace,  94,  98. 

Bidney,  Miss  J.,  Queen  Victoria's  wedding  veil 

made  by,  167. 
Bier  ton,  132. 
Binche  lace,  119. 
Bisette  lace,  75,  119. 
Black  lace,  cleaning,  87. 

Devonshire,  147. 
Black  silk  laces,  119,  120. 
Blandford  lace,  119,  153. 
Blandford  point,  cost  of,  40. 
Bleach,  lime  as  a,  130. 
Blessington,  Lady,  48. 
Bletchley,  132. 
Blonde,  a  summer  lace,  43. 
Blonde  de  Caen,  120. 
Blonde  de  fil,  182. 
Blonde  laces,  net,  121. 

Nineteenth  century,  47, 

Sher borne,  196. 

Silk,  197. 

Wheat  or  maize  pattern,  121. 
Bobbins,  207. 

Beads  on,  210. 

Introduction  of,  20. 
Bobbin  lace,  Buckinghamshire,  125. 

Change  from   vandyked   to  straight  edge, 

25- 

Characteristics  of,  124. 

Cross  bar  open,  208. 

Definition  of,  121. 

Dressed  pillow  for,  209. 

Duchesse  spray  of,  120. 

First  mention  of,  125. 

Grounds,  212. 

Italy  the  home  of,  16. 

Judging,  88. 

Netherlands  taught  Northern  Europe,  118. 

Open  braid,  214. 

Open  dots,  214. 

Rare  specimen  of  seventeenth  century,  24. 

Restoring,  84,  85,  86. 

Trolly,  125. 
Bobbin-made  ground,  88. 

Plait,  88. 

Reseau,  88. 
Bobbin  net,  first  made  in  the  nineteenth  century, 

47- 
Trade,  statistics  of,  103. 


Bock,  Franz,  catalogue  by,  98. 
Bodice  trimming,  seventeenth  century,  65. 
Bohemian  bobbin  lace,  115. 
Boislannay,  Mme.  Malbiche  de,  44. 
Bone  lace,  125,  215. 

Importation  of,  98. 

Pins,  215. 
Bone  point,  125. 
Bonnard,  M.  de,  pictures  of,  38. 

Collection  of  costumes,  26,  27. 
Books  on  lace,  94,  98. 
Border  made  of  fragments,  83. 
Borlase,  Sir  Henry,  founder  of  the  Marlow  lace 

school,  130. 
Bosse,  Abraham,  picture  and  engravings  by, 

35-  65. 

Boucher,  fans  painted  by,  66. 
Boulogne  fisher-girls,  head -gear  of,  70. 
Bourgogne  peasant  laces,  74. 
Bourgoin,  69. 

Bowen,  Samuel,  on  Honiton  lace,  169. 
Brabancon  lace  is  indexed  under  Brussels  lace. 
Brabant  flax  for  Brussels  lace,  128. 
Braid  of  twisted  threads,  ancient,  4. 
Braids,  straw,  200. 
Branching  fibres,  207. 
Brazilian  lace,  125,  126. 
Brazilian  straw-plaiting,  200. 
Bridal  dress  of  1830,  51. 
Bridal  laces,  20,  126,  134. 

For  the  Church,  58. 
Bride  boucl6e,  113. 
Bride  6pinglee,  113. 
Bride  grounds,  212. 

Bride  picotee,  a  speciality  of  Argentan  lace,  113. 
Bride's  trousseau   (French)  in  the  eighteenth 

century,  38. 
Brides,  207. 
Brides  claires,  207. 
Brides  orn6es,  89,  207,  208. 
Bristol,  Earl  of,  portrait  of,  34. 
Broderie   de   Malines   (181)    is  indexed   under 

Mechlin  lace. 
Broderie  de  Nancy,  150. 
Bruges  laces,  126,  151,  155,  181,  203. 
Brussels  lace,  127. 

Applique,  in. 

Assemblage  of,  129. 

Binche,  119. 

Brabant  flax  for,  128. 

Designers  of,  129. 

Designs  followed  the  fashions,  129. 

Discoloration  of,  130. 

Eighteenth  century,  43. 


224 


INDEX. 


Brussels  lace— continued. 

English  thread  for,  128. 

Factory  converted  into  a  hospital,  48. 

Flounces,  51. 

Flowers,  129. 

Machine-made  net  for,  129. 

Piecemeal  manufacture  of,  129. 

Point  de  raccroc,  129. 

Relief  in,  129. 

Thread  used  for,  128. 

Vrai  reseau,  129. 

Wages  of  thread-spinners,  128. 

Wire  ground,  219. 
Bryony  and  poppy  design,  168. 
Buckinghamshire  laces,  130. 

Baby  laces,  132. 

Cowper,  petition  from,  130. 

Decline  of,  owing  to  machinery,  132. 

Edward  (Prince)  of  York's  layette,  132. 

English  Lille,  154. 

French  emigrants'  influence  on,  132. 

Gingles,  210. 

Guipure,  166. 

Hanslope,  131. 

Maltese,  180. 

Marlow  school,  130. 

Newport  Pagnell,  131. 

Olney, 131. 

Pedlars  in,  76. 

Places  producing  (in  1862),  132. 

Plaited,  186. 

Prize  awarded  to,  for  best  piece  of  English 
bone  lace,  131. 

Queen's  (Victoria)  trousseau,  132. 

Ruffles   presented    to   the   King    by    Earl 
Temple,  131. 

Trolly,  125,  130,  134,  152. 

Yak,  206. 

Buckle  stem  stitch,  219. 
Bulgarian  peasant  laces,  71. 
Bullion  lace,   132.      See  also  Gold  and  Silver 

lace. 

Bunt  lace,  196. 
Burano  lace,  57,  133. 

Argentella  point,  114. 

Cathedral  laces,  57. 

D'Este,  Mme.,  mistress  of  the  school,  133. 

Fans,  66. 

Modern  point,  183. 

Point  gaze,  133. 

Point  gotico,  133. 

Point  in  the  eighteenth  century,  42. 

Royal  school,  134. 

Scarpariola,  Cencia,  133. 


Burano  lace — continued. 

Seguin,  M.,  on,  133. 

Varieties  of,  134. 
Burning  of  contraband  lace,  79. 
Butterflies'  wings  in  relief,  170. 
Buttonhole  stitch,  207. 

Never  seen  in  machine-made  lace, 


Cabinets  for  collections,  91,  92. 
Caen  laces,  116. 

Black  silk,  120 

Blonde,  120. 

Blonde  net,  121. 

Peasant  laces,  70. 
Calabria,  174. 
Calvados,  116. 

Cambrai,  Archbishop  of,  ruffles  owned  by,  40. 
Camille,   Mme.,   old   lace   brought   again   into 

fashion  by,  48. 
Campane  lace,  134. 
Candia  lace,  139. 
Cannetille,  132. 
Caps,  69.     See  Peasant  laces. 

Mob,  pinned  under  the  chin,  44. 
Capuchin  mummies  at  Monreale,  62. 
Card-sharpers,  ruffles  used  by,  40. 
Care  of  lace,  82. 
Carnasiere,  fil  de,  59. 
Carnival  laces,  20,  134. 
Carpaccio,  fans  painted  by,  64. 
Carrickmacross  lace,  134,  172. 
Cartisane,  207. 
Cartisane  padding,  163. 
Cascade,  208. 
Casket  for  storing  lace,  92. 
Castlemaine,  Lady,  33. 
Catalonia  black  silk  laces,  119. 

Blonde  net,  121. 
Caterpillar  lace,  135. 
Catherine  de'  Medicis,  17,  24,  97,  187,  205 

Portrait  of,  15. 
Catherine  de  Rohan,  135. 
Catherine  of  Aragon,  116,  130,  152. 
Catherine,  Queen,  17. 
Catherine  II.  of  Russia,  194. 
Cauchoise  peasant  laces,  67. 
Caul  lace,  135. 
Centre  fibre,  208. 

Cevennes  silk  for  Bayeux  lace,  116. 
Ceylon  lace,  180. 

Pillow  lace,  135. 
Chaise,  La,  29. 
Chaldaic  needlework,  4. 


INDEX. 


225 


Chalet-sur-Moselle,    hempen    thread    spun   at, 

178. 

Champ,  208. 
Chansons  a  toile,  96,  100,  208. 

by  Ranclegger,  100. 
Chantilly  lace,  135. 

Bayeux  lace  similar  to,  116. 
Black  silk,  119. 
Blonde  de  Caen,  120. 
Blonde  net,  121. 
First  made  with  flax  thread,  38. 
Kinds  of,  135. 
Nineteenth  century,  47. 
Old,  45. 

Places  of  manufacture,  135. 
I       Roseau,  fineness  of,  136. 
Scarf  of,  136. 
Tippet,  52. 

Charles  I.  of  England,  33,  190. 
Charles  II.  of  England,  33,  36,  127,  149,  174. 
Charles  II.  of  France,  sumptuary  laws  of,  9. 
Charles  V.,  Emperor,  118. 
Charles  V.  of  France,  114. 
Charles  VIII.,  sumptuary  laws  of,  9. 
Charles  IX.  of  Sweden,  200. 

Sumptuary  laws  of,  9. 
Charles  of  Savoy,  portrait  of,  15. 
Charles  the  Bold,  17. 
Charles  the  Great,  Sumptuary  law  of,  8. 
Charlotte,  Queen,  Brussels  lace  owned  by,  128. 
Dorset  lace  worn  by,  178. 
Institution  founded  by,  40. 
Mechlin  lace  the  favourite  of,  181. 
Charmouth,  206. 
Chateau-Thierry,  28,  156. 
Chaucer,  cut-work  mentioned  by,  19. 
Chauvin,  Pierre,  and  Valenciennes  lace,  202. 
Chaux  de  fonds,  51. 
Cheap  laces  formerly  called   "  beggars'  laces," 

117. 

Chenille  lace,  136. 
Chesterfield,  Lord,  78. 
Chiavari,  158. 
Chicken  skin,  67. 
China  craze  and  the  lace  trade  in  the  eighteenth 

century,  41. 

China,  lace-making  in,  3. 
Chinese  fans,  64. 
Chioggia  lace,  42,  136. 

Peasant  laces  of,  70. 
Choristers'  surplices  at  the  Vatican,  61. 
Christening  suits,  61. 

Christian  IV.  of  Denmark,  portrait  of,  16, 
Christian  IX.  of  Denmark,  76, 


Church  lace,  56,  136.    See  Ecclesiastical  Lace. 
Cingalese  lace,  180. 

Pillow  lace,  135. 
Cinq  trous,  137. 
Circassian  women's  dress,  5. 
Classification  of  laces,  3. 
Clavi,  214. 
Claydon, 132. 
Cleaning  laces,  86,  87. 
Clement  XIII.,  57. 
Clement  XIV.,  portrait  of,  60. 
Clement's  (M.)  factory  at  Bayeux,  116. 
Clerget,  Ch.  Ernest,  pattern-books,  etc.,  by,  98. 
Clinquant,  133. 
Clonakilty,  171,  206. 
Close  leaf,  208,  209. 
Close  stitch,  208. 
Close  trefoil,  208. 
Clouet,  Jean,  portrait  by,  15. 
Cluny  lace,  137. 

Guipure,  137,  138. 

Plaited,  186. 

Coburg's    (Duchess    of)    present    of     Russian 
laces   to   South  Kensington   Museum, 

195- 

Cocheris,  Hippolyte,  on  old  lace,  98. 
Code  Michaud,  27. 
Coffins,  smuggling  in,  79. 
Coggeshall,  201. 
Coif  edged  with  purling,  21. 
Colbert,   minister  of    Louis   XIV.,  founder   of 
the  Alen9on  factory,  n,  26,  28,  36,  70, 
no,    113,   137,   152,  155,  156,  173,  182, 
187,  204. 

Inventory  of  his  household,  149. 

Portrait  of,  29. 

Cole,  Alan  S.,  works  on  lace  by,  98,  104. 
Collar,  Devonshire  guipure,  53. 
Collar,  falling,  166. 

Extinction  of,  33,  34. 

Ruff  replaced  by,  26. 

Succeeded  by  cravat,  33,  34. 
Collar,  flat,  35. 
Collar,  Medicis,  25,  27,  32. 
Collar  of  Cyprus  lace,  142. 
Collar  of  Flemish  needle-point,  155. 
Collections,  arranging,  90,  91. 
Colonial  and  Indian  Exhibition,  Cyprus  lace  at, 

142. 

Colouring  laces,  87. 
Colyford,  148. 
Colyton,  147,  148. 
Commode  head-dress,  34. 
Commonwealth,  the,  33,  126. 


226 


INDEX. 


Como  laces,  49,  137,  159,  190*. 

Conclave,  Holy,  laces  of,  58. 

Continuous  inner  pearl,  208,  209. 

Contraband  lace,  burning,  79. 

Convents,  lace  made  in,  58,  94,  150,  179,  198. 

Mediaeval  work  in,  18. 

Tuition  in,  17. 

Varieties  of  lace  made  in,  184. 
Coptic  drawn-linen  work,  8. 
Coques,  Gonzales,  portrait  by,  25. 
Coquille,  en,  209. 
Coralline  point,  137. 
Coralline  weed  and  the  introduction  of  bobbins, 

20,  182. 

Cord  of  twisted  threads,  ancient,  3. 
Cordonnet,  208. 
Corfu  lace,  137,  163. 
Cork,  fan  worked  at,  68. 
Corneille  on  Havre  laces,  70. 
Cornish  laces,  153. 
Cost  of  lace-making,  i. 
Cotton  thread  used  instead  of  fiax,  47. 
Couronnes,  208. 

Courriers  de  la  mode,  grands,  80. 
Courtrai  fiax,  128. 
Courtrai  lace,  137,  155,  181,  203. 
Coutances,  lace-trimmed  cap  worn  by  peasants 

of,  72. 

Cowper,  petition  from,  130. 
Coxcombs,  208. 

Cravat,  falling  collar  succeeded  by,  33,  34. 
Cravat,  folded,  36. 

Craven,  Lady  Elizabeth,  portrait  of,  53. 
Crete  lace,  139. 
Creva  drawn  lace,  140. 
Crochet,  139,  140. 

French  patterns  for,  103. 

Irish,  52. 
Crochetage,  27. 
Cromwell,  33. 
Cross  bar  open,  208,  214. 
Crossing  or  crochetage,  27. 
Crowns,  208. 
"  Crusoe,  Robinson,"  his  present  of  Flanders 

lace,  161. 
Cuddington,  132. 
Cuff  of  point  neige,  188. 
Curragh  lace,  172. 

Cushion,  lace-trimmed,  for  infants,  62. 
Customs  duties,  40,  44,  53,  78,  127. 
Cut  cambric  and  needlework,  177. 
Cuthbert's  (St.)  coffin  in  Durham  Cathedral, 

5,18. 
Cut  linen,  an  early  form  of  lace  work,  6. 


Cut-work,  18,  140. 

a  secret  of  the  Church,  7. 

Cecelia  de  Mula's  dowry,  142. 

Greek  lace,  140. 

Honiton  lace,  208. 

Mending,  85. 

Pagan,  Matteo,  on,  141. 

Sleeve  trimmed  with,  13. 
Cyprus  lace,  142. 

D 

Daisy,  Honiton,  bobbin-made,  167. 
Dalecarlian  lace,  143. 

Hair  lace,  190. 

Peasant  laces,  75. 

Point  tresse,  190. 
Dalmatian  peasant  lace,  74. 
Dalmatic,  the,  57. 
Dame  Joan  ground,  212. 
Dammartin,  135. 

Danes,  coat-trimmings  of  the  ancient,  5. 
Danish  laces,  77,  143. 

Drawn  muslin,  144. 

Funeral  laces,  62. 

Jutland,  143. 

Local  names  for  patterns  of,  144. 

Patterns  of,  144. 

Peasant  laces,  72. 

Schleswig,  143. 

Stien beck's  efforts  for,  143. 

Tender,  143. 
Danish  mummies,  62. 
Dante  on  dress,  7. 
D'Aosta,  Due,  no. 
Darned  lace,  144,  145. 
Darned  netting,  12,  19,  144,  145. 

for  furniture,  144. 

Mending,  85. 

Names  of,  144. 

Dartmouth,  Lord,  petition  to,  130. 
D'Aste,  Baroness,  179. 
Date  of  lace,  judging,  89 
Dauphin,  layette  presented  to,  by   the   Papal 

Nuncio,  61. 

Dead  bodies  replaced  by  smuggled  lace,  79. 
Dead,  dressings  for  the,  62. 
Decreuze,  portrait  by,  50. 
Definition  of  the  term  lace,  3,  174. 
Defoe  on  Bedfordshire  lace,  34. 

on  Blandford  lace,  40,  119. 
De  Glen,  Jean,  pattern-book  by,  176. 
Denny,  Lady  Arabella,  a  great  patron  of  Irish 

lace,  171. 
Dentele,  208. 


INDEX. 


227 


Dentelle,  144. 
Dentelle  a  cartisan,  163. 
Dentelle  a  la  reine,  145. 
Dentelle  a  la  vierge,  145,  147,  184 

Peasant  laces  of,  70. 
Dentelle  au  fuseau,  145. 
Dentelle  de  fil,  145. 
Dentelle  de  Liege,  176. 
Dentelle  Irlandaise,  183. 

Book  on,  103. 
Dentelle  redin,  146. 
Dentelle  Renaissance,  183. 
Designs,  208. 

Most  ancient,  4. 

Old  lace,  98-105. 
D'Este,  Mme.  Anna  Bellorio,  mistress  of  the 

Burano  lace  school,  133. 
De  Vere,  Lady,  and  Irish  point,  172. 
Devonia  lace,  52,  146. 

Bobbin-made  flower,  170. 

Raised  flower,  216. 
Devonshire  lace,  146. 

Adapting,  83. 

Applique,  in. 

Black,  147. 

Decline  of  the  industry,  148. 

Fan  made  at  Seaton,  67. 

Greek,  147. 

Guipure  collar,  53. 

Honiton,  167. 

Honiton  Application,  167. 

Imitation  of  Flemish,  147. 

Introduction  of,  146. 

Male  and  female  workers,  147. 

Nineteenth  century,  52. 

Pedlars  in,  76. 

Round  pillow  for,  217. 

Trolly,  147. 

Truck  system  of  payment,  78. 
Diamond  plaitings,  167. 
Dictionary  of  Lace,  107. 
Dieppe  lace,  148. 

Ave  Maria,  116. 

Dentelle  &  la  vierge,  145,  146. 

Designs,  149. 

Double-ground,  146. 

Modern  school,  149. 

Peasant  lace,  72. 

Point,  148. 

Dieudonne,    M.,    on   vrai    and   fausse   Valen- 
ciennes, 139. 

Digby,  George,  Earl  of  Bristol,  portrait  of,  34. 
Dijon,  178. 
Divided  leaves,  213. 


Doddridge,  Lady,  effigy  of,  146. 

Doges'  Palace,  model  of,  80. 

Dogs  used  for  smuggling,  78. 

Dolls,  fashion,  79,  80. 

Dorsetshire,  bullion  lace  found  in,  132. 

Dorsetshire  barrow,  gold  lace  in,  4. 

Dorsetshire  lace,  149. 

Blandford,  119. 

Blonde,  196. 

Lyme  Regis,  178. 

Sherborne,  196. 
Dots,  open,  214. 
Dotted  style,  91. 
Double-ground  Dieppe  lace,  146. 
Douglas,  Bishop,  on  the  dandyism  of  Leipsic 

students,  160. 
D'Oyleys,  208. 

Crochet,  139. 

Made  from  fragments,  83. 
Drawers  for  storing,  93. 

Drawn  linen,    Saracenic,  the  earliest  form  of 
open-work,  5,  7. 

With  Arabic  inscription,  5. 
Drawn-work,  19,  149,  150. 

Ancient,  7-10. 

Geometrical,  150. 

Names  of,  150. 

Persian,  186. 

Dresden  Museum,  catalogue  of  lace  in,  98. 
Dresden,  settlement  of  French  refugees  in,  159. 
Dresden  point,  150. 
Dressed  pillows,  209,  217. 
Dressing-room  in  the  eighteenth  century,  38. 
Dry-cleaning  damaging  to  lace,  87. 
Dubarry,  Mme.,  38,  135. 
Dublin,  171. 

Dublin  Museum,  catalogue  of  lace  in,  98. 
Duchesse  lace,  Bruges,  126. 

Raised  work,  216. 
Dunkirk  lace,  151,  181. 

Dunstan  (St.),  cut-work  patterns  designed  by,  7. 
Dutch  flax,  151. 
Dutch  lare,  150,  151. 

Dentelle  a  la  reine,  145. 

Peasant  laces,  72. 
Dutch  oorijzers,  72. 
Duties,  Customs,  40,  44,  53,  78,  127. 


Earliest  forms  of  lace,  i,  2,  3. 
Ear-plates,  metal,  72. 
Ecclesiastical  lace,  56. 

Albs,  56. 

Albs  at  Notre  Dame,  56. 


228 


INDEX. 


Ecclesiastical  \a.ce— continued. 

Alencon  lace,  108. 

Altar  hangings,  58,  60. 

Bridal  lace  for  the  Church,  58. 

Burano  Cathedral,  57. 

Christening  suits,  61. 

Conclave,  Holy,  58. 

Cut-work,  7. 

Dalmatics,  57. 

Drawn- work,  150. 

Fabulous  value  of  old,  56. 

Funeral  laces,  62. 

Genoese  macramS,  159. 

Gold  lace,  161. 

Holy  or  hollie  point,  60,  166. 

Italian,  173. 

Jewish,  60. 

Knotted  lace,  174. 

Liege,  176. 

Macrame,  179. 

Norman- English  Church,  60. 

Notre  Dame,  Paris,  54. 

Orphreys,  60. 

Paris  Oratoire,  58. 

Paten-cover,  58. 

Reformation,  effects  of,  60,  61. 

Rohan  family,  58. 

St.  Mary-at-Hill,  London,  59, 

Self-sacrificing  work  of  ladies,  59. 

Spanish,  199. 

Statuette,     border    of    bobbin-made    lace 
from,  57. 

Surplices,  57. 

Talith,  the,  60. 

Tippets,  103. 

Venetian,  205. 

Vestments,  56,  136. 
Ecru,  209. 
Edges,  varieties  of,  209. 

Bead, 207. 

Plain,  215,  216. 

Edging  as  an  indication  of  age,  89. 
Edgings,  209. 

Patterns  for  (1591),  95. 
Edward  (Prince)  of  York's  layette,  132. 
Effigies  of  monarchs,  &c.,  decked  with  lace,  62. 
Egyptian  antique  laces,  &c.,  2,  3,  4,  5,  6,  7,  9, 

62. 

Egyptian  mummy  wrappings,  62. 
Egyptian  sarcophagi,  figures  on,  4. 
Eighteenth  century,  anecdotal  history  of  lace  in 
the,  37. 

Austrian  laces,  51. 

Bankruptcies  of  lacemen,  42. 


Eighteenth  century — continued. 

Belgian  laces,  43. 

Designs,  91. 

English  laces,  40,   153. 

Equipage  de  bain,  38. 

Fans,  67. 

Fortunes  spent  on  ruffles  and  jabots,  39. 

French  laces,  37. 

Gambling  for  lace  stakes,  42. 

Gold  and  silver  lace,  41. 

Italian  laces,  42. 

Lace  bills,  42. 

Mantillas,  42. 

Mourning  wear,  43. 

Picture  of  the  times,  37. 

Point  lace,  190. 

Reveille,  the,  38. 

Servants'  livery,  40. 

Smuggling,  44,  78. 

South  Sea  Bubble,  41. 

Spanish  laces,  41,  42. 

Summer  laces,  43. 

Toilet  table,  38. 

Valenciennes  laces,  204. 

Venetian  laces,  205. 

Winter  laces,  43. 
Elberfeld,  160. 

Elephant's-tail  hair  lace,  190. 
Elizabeth  (Queen),  35,  44,  60,  77,  126,  152,  167, 
190,  198,  204,  213,  216,  219. 

Fans  presented  to,  64,  66. 

Portrait  of,  64. 

Wardrobe  accounts  of,  157. 
Elizabeth  of  Bourbon,  portrait  of,  17. 
Elizabeth  of  York,  204. 
Ell  of  various  nationalities,  length  of,  209. 
Embroidered  muslin,  47. 
Embroidered   net   in   the   nineteenth   century, 

49. 

Embroidery,  ancient,  confused  with  lace,  4,  5. 
En  coquille,  209. 
En  eventail,  209. 
English  application  of  to-day,  54. 
English  Church  vestments,  57. 
English  ell,  209. 
English  fans,  65. 

English    laces,  152.     These    are  fully  indexed 
under  their  respective  headings. 

Acts  of  Parliament  protecting,  153. 

Bobbin-made  tape  lace,  151. 

Eighteenth  century,  40. 

Flemish  influence,  152. 

Greek,  163. 

Nineteenth  century,  47,  52. 


INDEX. 


229 


English  laces — continued. 

Plaited,  186. 

Plea  for,  54. 

Purlings,  152. 

Reticella,  194. 

Seventeenth  century,  32. 

Trolly,  202. 

Varieties  of,  153. 

Venetian  influence,  152. 
English  Lille,  154,  184. 
English  point,  54,  154. 

Eighteenth  century,  40. 

Origin  of,  35. 

English  straw-plaiting,  199. 
English  sumptuary  laws,  effects  of,  32. 
English  thread  for  Belgian  laces,  128. 
Engrelures,  87,  209. 

Judging  lace  by,  89. 
Entoilages,  116,  209. 
Entredeux,  209. 
Epaulettes,  officers',  133. 
Equipage  de  bain  in  the    eighteenth    century, 

38,  1 60. 

Erzegebirge  district,  160. 
Etats  Generaux,  costumes  prescribed  by,  46. 
Eternelle,  161. 
Eu,  149. 
Eugenie,  Empress,  38. 

Dress  presented  to  the  Pope  by,  59. 
Eventail,  en,  209. 
Evolution  of  lace,  i. 
Exeter,  148. 
Exeter  Cathedral  inventory,  19. 

Tombs  in,  146. 
Exmouth,  147 
Eyck,  Jacob  van,  praises  of  lace  sung  by,  17. 


Fairs,  lace  bartered  at,  77. 
Falbala,  210. 
Falling  collar,  166. 

Extinction  of,  33. 

Replaces  the  ruff,  26. 

Succeeded  by  cravat,  33,  34. 
Fambri  and  Pelestrina  lace,  185. 
Fambri,   Signer  Paulo,  revival  of  Burano  and 
Chioggia  lace  industries,  by,  134,  136. 
Fans,  63. 

Antique  sticks  used  with  modern  leaves, 
67. 

Applique",  67. 

Burano,  66,  67. 

Chicken-skin,  67. 

Chinese,  64. 


Fans — continued. 

Designs  in,  66. 

Earliest,  63. 

English,  65. 

English  point,  66. 

Gentlemen's,  65. 

Irish  needle-point,  66. 

Irish,  worked  at  Cork,  68. 

Italian,  64. 

Invention  of,  63. 

Japanese,  68. 

Lace  and  painting  combined,  67. 

Long-handled,  65. 

Married  women's,  64. 

Mirror  in  centre  of,  64. 

Painted,  64. 

Parchment  lace  on,  65. 

Presented  to  Queen  Louise  of  Lorraine,  64. 

Presented     to     the     English     sovereign, 
64,  66. 

Rosaline  point,  66. 

Royal  attributes,  63. 

Screen-shaped,  62. 

Sticks  studded  with  precious  stones,  65. 

Useful  v.  ornamental,  68. 
Fashion  puppets,  79,  80. 
Fausse  Valenciennes,  59,  203,  204. 
Fecamp,  149. 

Felkin,  William,  on  lace  manufactures,  98. 
Feregnola,  poet,  155. 
Ferrara  Cathedral,  13. 
Fertiault,  Francois  de,  on  old  lace,  98. 
Fiammingo,  Cavaliera,  portrait  of,  19. 
Fibres,  branching,  207. 

Centre,  208. 

Open,  214. 
Fifteenth  century,  12. 

English  laces,  152. 

Picture  of  the  times,  12. 

Sumptuary  laws,  7. 

Valenciennes  lace,  202. 

Venetian  laces,  204. 
Fil  de  carnasiere,  59. 
Fil  de  cren,  209. 
Fil  de  trace,  209,  210. 
Fil  tir6,  150. 
Filet  brode,  166. 
Filet  brod6  &  reprises,  144. 
Filet  guipure,  166. 
Fillings,  209,  213. 
Fimboice,  meaning  of,  5. 
Finger,  a  measurement,  209. 
Fino  d'erbe  Spada,  155. 
Fire-proof  lace,  115. 


2  30 


INDEX. 


Fischer,  Hugo,  on  old  lace,  98. 

Fish  bones  used  instead  of  pins,  125. 

Fisher  girl,  legend  of,  182. 

Fisherman's  lace,  190. 

Flanders'  claim  to  the  introduction  of  lace,  16, 

117. 

Flanders  in  mediaeval  times,  12. 
Flanders,  Northern  Europe  taught  lace-making 

by,  18. 
Flanders  lace,  155. 

Act  preventing  emigration  of  workers,  155. 

Antwerp  lace  known  as,  no. 

Bobbin-made,  155. 

Guipure,  166. 

Mechlin,  181. 

Needle-point,  155. 

CEil  de  perdrix,  214. 

Point,  alb  of,  41. 

Reticella,  194. 

"  Robinson  Crusoe's  "  present,  161. 

Tape  lace,  201. 

Trolle  kant,  202. 

Trolly,  202. 

Varieties  of,  155. 
Flanders  point,  41,  117. 
Flat  point  (point  plat),  127,  155,  216. 
Flax,  210. 

Flax,  cotton  thread  used  instead  of,  47. 
Flax  thread,  transition   from   gold  and  silver 

lace  to,  7. 
Flemish  ell,  209. 

Flemish  lace,  &c.,  is  indexed  under  Flanders. 
Fleurs  volantes,  208,  210. 
Flockton's  marionettes,  80. 
Florentine  lace,  155. 

Greek  lace,  163. 
Florentine  paintings,  the  earliest  showing  lace, 

13- 

Flots,  210. 
Flounce,  210. 
Flounces  on  the  skirt  in  the  eighteenth  century, 

42 

Flowers,  raised,  170,  189,  216,  217. 
Flower    pot    and    Lily  of    the    Annunciation 

pattern,  167. 

Flowers  in  point  lace,  book  on,  104. 
Fond,  210,  211. 
Fond  de  neige,  210. 
Fond  simple,  176,  210. 
Fonds  claires,  210. 
Fontange  head-dress,  28,  32,  33. 
"  Foolish  Virgins,"  the,  by  Abraham  Bosse,  35. 
Footings,  87,  210. 

Judging  lace  by,  89. 


Founce,  210 

Fourteenth  century,  picture  of  the  times,  12. 

Sumptuary  laws,  7. 
Fowler,  Mrs  ,  of  Honiton,  54,  148. 
Fragments,  joining,  82. 
Fragonard,  paintings  by,  32. 
Praise,  or  ruff,  210. 

Replaced  by  falling  collar,  26. 
France,  He  de,  178. 

France,  laces  of,  are  indexed  under  French. 
France,  smuggling  of  lace  into,  78. 
Francis  I.,  15. 

Sumptuary  laws  of,  9. 
Franco,  Giacomo,  patterns  by,  125. 
Franco,  Girolamo,  designs  by,  98. 
Francois,  Prince  of  Savoy-Carignan,  portrait  of, 

24. 

Francois  Regis,  patron  saint  of  lace-makers,  21. 
Frederick,  Prince  of  Wales,  marriage  of,  43. 
Frederick    William,   Elector  of  Brandenburg, 

1 60. 

French  ell,  209. 
French  fashion  dolls,  79,  80. 
French,  Gilbert}.,  on  ecclesiastical  tippets,  103. 
French  ground  Northamptonshire  laces,  184. 
French    laces,   156.      These  are  fully  indexed 
under  their  respective  headings. 

Bobbin-made,  157. 

Eighteenth  century,  37. 

Florentine  influence,  156. 

Gimp  or  guipure,  164. 

Greek,  163. 

Medicis  points,  205. 

Modern  point,  183. 

Net  ground  laces,  113. 

Nineteenth  century,  46,  49. 

Origin  of,  156. 

Peasant  laces,  69,  71,  72. 

Petit  motif,  185. 

Plaited,  186. 

Point  de  France,  187. 

Reticella,  194, 

Seventeenth  century,  23. 

Varieties  of,  156. 

Venetian  influence,  204. 
French  Revolution,  fatal  to  fine  lace,  n,  44. 
French  straw-plaiting,  200. 
French  sumptuary  laws,  effects  of,  8,  11,21,  24, 

28,  98,  107,  117,  175. 

Freytag  on  German  life  in  the  sixteenth  cen- 
tury, 1 60. 

Fribourg  straw-plaiting,  200. 
Frisure,  133. 
Frivolit6,  202. 


INDEX. 


231 


Funeral  clothing,  62. 
Funerals,  lace  used  at,  33. 
Furbelow,  210. 

Q 

Galloon,  ancient  Egyptian  band  of,  7. 
on  harlequin's  dress,  43. 
Tulle,  116. 
Gambling   for  lace   stakes   in   the    eighteenth 

century,  42. 
Garniture,  210. 
Gawcott,  132. 
Geneva,  201. 
Genoa  laces,  157. 

Cushions  used  in  making,  158. 
Early,  157. 
Export  of,  159. 
Fisherman's  lace,  190. 
Gold,  161. 

Macram6,  157,  158,  179. 
Plaited,  158. 
Point  pecheur,  190. 
Seats  of  the  Industry,  157,  158. 
Varieties  of,  157. 
Genoese  sumptuary  laws,  157. 
Gentlemen's  fans,  65. 
Geometrical  patterns,  90. 
George  I.,  41,  115,  134. 
George  II.,  43. 
George  III.,  44,  78. 
German  drawn-linen  work,  fourteenth  century, 

10. 
German  laces,  159. 

American  market  for,  51. 

Bobbin-made,  159,  160. 

Early,  16. 

Equipage  de  bain,  160. 

"  Eternelle,"  161. 

French  influence,  159. 

Greek,  163. 

Introduction  of,  159. 

Nineteenth  century,  51. 

Northern,  159. 

Pattern-books,  160. 

Peasant  laces,  71,  75. 

Peasants'    household   linen   adorned   with 

lace,  75. 
Plaited,.  186. 
Reticella,  194. 
Southern,  160. 
Uttmann,  Barbara,  159. 
Venetian  influence,  160. 

Germany,  introduction  of  bobbin  lace  to,  15. 
Lace  postmen  in,  77. 


Ghent  lace,  161,  203. 
Gilbert,  Mme.,  187. 

Gimp,  definitions  of,  210.     See  also  Guipure. 
Gold  and  silver,  132. 
Ragusa,  193. 
Gingles,  210. 

Giovanelli,  Princesse,  134. 
Glen,  Jean  de,  pattern-book  by,  176. 
Gloucester,  Duchess  of,  48. 
Goderonn6,  210. 
Godet,  211. 

Gold  and  silver,  transition  from,  to  flax,  7. 
Gold  and  silver  thread  lace,  early  specimen,  22. 
Gold   laces,   4-7,    132,    161.      See   also  Silver 

laces. 

Ancient,  161. 
a  reseau,  161. 
Cyprus,  142. 
Eighteenth  century,  41. 
Geometric  designs,  161. 
Harlequin's  dress,  43. 
in  Scandinavian  barrow,  4. 
Modern,  162. 
Plaited,  186. 
Point  d'Espagne,  162. 
Spanish  Jews'  influence  on  French,  162. 
Gold  nets  mentioned  by  Homer,  4. 
Goubaud,  Mme.,  works  by,  103. 
Goudronne,  210. 

Graeco-Roman  tombs,  netting  in,  4. 
Grammont  lace,  118,  155,  162. 
Gras  point,  211. 
Grave-clothes,  62. 
Great  Hampden,  132. 
Great  Marlow,  petition  from,  130. 
Great  Sandford,  132. 
Greek  Devonshire  lace,  147. 
Greek  lace,  ancient  and  modern,  163. 
Cut-work,  140. 
Designs,  163. 
Imitations  of,  163. 
Peasant  laces,  75. 
Seats  of  the  industry,  163. 
Greek  point,  162,  194. 
Groppo,  2 IT. 
Groslait,  178. 
Gros  point  de  Venise,  189. 
Reproduction  of,  183. 
Grounds,  88,  211,  212. 

Forerunner  of  the  modern,  2. 
Mechlin,  214. 
Star,  218. 
Strand,  219. 
Wire,  219. 


232 


INDEX. 


Grounded  Venetian  point,  163. 

Gruppo,  212. 

Guesney,  28. 

Gueuse  lace,  163. 

Guipure,  163,  212.     See  also  Gimp. 

Ancient,  163. 

Border  of  French,  164. 

Costliness  of,  163. 

d'Art,  103,  104,  144,  163,  212. 

de  Binche,  119. 

de  Bruges,  126. 

Definition  of,  163. 

de  Flandre,  166. 

Falling  collar,  166. 

French, 26. 

Modern,  166. 

Needle-point,  15. 

Padding  of,  163. 

Tape,  163,  165,  166. 

Thread,  163,  165. 
Gunning,  Misses,  196. 
Guyard,  Sieur,  and  Argentan  lace,  113. 

H 

Haddenham,  132. 

Hailstone,     S.    H.    Lilla,    catalogue     of     her 

collection,  103. 
Designs  by,  103. 

Sainte-Croix'  book  on  her  collection,  104. 
Hainault,  119,  175,  202. 
Hair  (human)  lace,  190. 
Hair,    single    or    married   state    indicated   by 

arrangement  of,  71 . 
Half- wheels,  212,  213. 
Halifax,  Marquis  of,  portrait  of,  36. 
Hamburg   lace   purchased    for    Lady    Nelson, 

160. 

Hamburg  point,  150. 
Hamilton,  Anne,  Duchess  of,  196. 
Hamilton  lace,  196. 
Hampden,  Great,  132. 
Handkerchief,     lace-trimmed,     early     picture 

showing,  35. 
Hand  ruffs  (ruffles),  217. 
Hanover,  160. 
Hanslope,  131. 
Harems,  work  in,  185. 
Harlequin's  dress   of  the  eighteenth    century, 

43- 

Hartz  Mountains,  benefactress  of,  15,  159. 
Havre  laces,  149,  184. 
Peasant  laces,  70. 

Hawkins,  Daisy  W.,  on  old  point  lace,  103. 
Headgear,  69.     See  Peasant  laces. 


Heading,  212. 

Health    Exhibition    (1884),    Buckinghamshire 

lace  at,  132. 
Heathcoat's     invention     of     the     net-making 

machine,  170. 
Hebrew  needlework,  4. 
Helene,  Princess,  of  France,  marriage  of, 

no. 

Henri  I.,  sumptuary  laws  of,  9. 
Henri  II.,  156,  210. 

Portrait  of,  13. 
Henri  III.,  163. 

Sumptuary  laws  of,  9. 
Henri  IV.,  sumptuary  laws  of,  9,  25. 
Henrietta  Mari  i,  wife  of  Charles  I.,  33. 

Portrait  of,  27. 
Henry  VIII.,  76,  156,  182. 

Fans,  65. 

Henry,  son  of  James  I.,  portrait  of,  31. 
Herbert,  Miss,  of  Exeter,  54. 
Hereno,  Val  d',  peasant  laces  of,  70. 
Hexagonal  grounds,  212. 
History  of  lace,  difficulty  of  tracing,  3. 
Holesom,  75,  201. 
Holl,  portrait  by,  52. 
Holland,  flax  thread  of,  151. 
Holland,  Queen  of,  72. 
Hollar,  portrait  by,  65. 
Hollie  or  holy  point,  60,  166. 

Christening  clothes,  167. 

Origin  of  word,  166. 

Patterns,  167. 
Holy  Dove  pattern,  167 
Holy  point,  60,  166. 
Homer,  nets  of  gold  mentioned  by,  4. 
Honeycomb  grounds,  189,  212. 
Honfleur,  149. 
Honiton  application,  167. 
Honiton  crochet,  140,  172. 
Honiton  guipure,  166. 

Cut-work,  208. 

Lacet  point,  213. 

Purlings,  216. 

Reseau,  217. 
Honiton  lace,  147,  148,  167. 

Applique,  in. 

Bath  Brussels,  169. 

Bobbin-made,  poppy  and   bryony  design, 
168. 

Bobbin-made  sprig,  148. 

Book  on,  105. 

Branching  fibres,  207. 

Brussels,  imitation,  167 

Close  leaf,  208,  209. 


INDEX. 


233 


Honiton  lace— continued. 

Close  trefoil,  208. 

Continuous  inner  pearl,  208,  209 

Cost  of,  170. 

Cost  of  Antwerp  thread  for  (1790),  170. 

Decay  of  the  industry  and  efforts  towards 
its  restoration,  170. 

Devonia,  170. 

Fire,  distress  caused  by,  169. 

Flemish  influence,  167. 

Gimp,  210. 

Guipure,  170. 

Inner  pearl,  212. 

Leaves  divided,  213. 

Machine-made  net,  effects  of,  on,  52. 

Nineteenth  century,  53. 

Open  fibre,  214. 

Open    fibre   used   in  bobbin  lace  to  form 
leaves,  169. 

Origin  of,  167. 

Primitive  method  of  payment,  170. 

Raised  work,  170,  216. 

Royal  family's  orders,  170. 

Schools,  54. 

Sprigs,  making  of,  169,  170. 

Stem  stitch,  219. 

Strand  ground,  219. 
Hospital  at  a  Brussels  lace  factory,  48. 
Huguenot  lace,  171. 
Huguenots,  the,  29. 
Human  hair  lace,  190. 
Humphrey  of  Honiton,  34. 
Hungarian  lace,  115. 
Hurde,   Mary,  of    Marlborough,   memoirs   of, 

149. 

I 

Identifying  lace,  87. 
He  de  France,  178. 

Peasant  laces  of,  70. 
Illering,  51. 
Increase  widths,  212. 
Incroyable  period,  47. 
Indian  elephants'-tail  hair  lace,  190. 
Indian  lace,  4,  171. 

Madras,  180. 

Point  lace,  171. 
Indian  shawls,  119. 
Indian  work  (punto  tirato),  150. 
"  Industria  "  (L')(  by  Paul  Veronese,  i. 
Inner  pearl,  212. 

Continuous,  208,  209. 
Innocent  IV.,  vestments  ordered  by,  17. 
Insertion,  212. 


Ionian  Islands,  162,  163,  194,  206. 

Grave-clothes  found  in,  62. 
Irish  laces,  171. 

Carrickmacross,  134. 

Crochet,  140,  172. 

Curragh,   172. 

Fans,  65,  67. 

Guipure,  172. 

Honiton  crochet,  140. 

Limerick,  177. 

Maltese,  180. 

Nineteenth  century,  52. 

Point,  140,  172,  206. 

Point  de  tricot,  140. 

Raised  rose  tricot,  140. 

Schools  for,  172. 

Seats  of  the  industry,  171,  172. 

Tambour,  201. 

Tatting,  202. 

Varieties  of,  172. 

Youghal,  206. 
Irish  point,  140,  172,  206. 

Crochet,  172. 

Isaakoz,  Peeter,  portrait  by,  16. 
Isabeau, lace,  87. 

Isaiah,  reference  to  "  networks  "  in,  4. 
Isidore,  St.,  and  the  dalmatic,  57. 
Isle  of  Man  lace,  172. 
Isle  of  Wight  lace,  172. 
Italian  fans,  64. 

Italian    laces,    173.     These   are  fully    indexed 
under  their  respective  headings. 

Bobbin-made  border,  173. 

Carnasiere,  fil  de,  59. 

Collection  of,  77. 

Early,  173. 

Eighteenth  century,  42. 

Knotted,  59,  174. 

Margherita,  181. 

Nineteenth  century,  49. 

Peasant  laces,  73. 

Petit  motif,  186. 

Poi.-t,  189. 

Prison-made,  49,  119. 

Songs  sung  by  the  workers,  96,  100. 

Tape  lace,  201. 
Italy  in  mediaeval  times,  12. 
Italy's  commerce  with  Arabia,  5. 
Italy   the    home  of  needle-point   and   bobbin 
laces,  14,  16. 

J 

Jabots,  212. 

Eighteenth  century,  39. 
Jacobites,  42. 


234 


INDEX. 


James  I.,  32,  182. 

Japanese  fans,  68. 

Japanese  lace,  4. 

Japanese  straw-plaiting,  200. 

Jesuit  lace,  172,  173. 

Jesurum  (Michel  Angelo),  book  by,  103 

Revival  of  Pelestrina  lace  by,  185. 
Jewellery  worn  by  peasants,  73,  74. 
Jewish  ceremonials,  lace  used  in,  60. 
Joan  (Dame)  grounds,  212. 
Joining  fragments,  82. 
Jonson,  Ben,  32. 
Josephine,  Empress,  129. 
Jours,  213,  214. 
Judging  lace,  87. 
Jupe,  213. 
Jupon, 213. 
Jutland,  143. 

Lace  postmen  in,  77. 

Peasant  laces,  72. 


Kenmare,  172. 

Kenmore,  206. 

Kerchief,  213. 

Killarney,  171,  172,  206. 

Kinsale,  171,  172,  206. 

Kneller,  portrait  by,  28. 

Knight,  Miss,  autobiography  of,  159. 

Knights'  robes,  214. 

Knots,  213. 

Knotted  lace,  20,  173. 

Knotted  white  thread,  Genoese,  179. 

Kufic  inscription  in  drawn  work,  8. 


Labelling  laces  in  collections,  93. 

Labric,  T.,  Queen  Elizabeth's  blacksmith,  216. 

Lace,  definition  of,  13,  74. 

Lace  bark  tree,  174,  175. 

Lace  postmen,  77. 

Lace  tokens,  213. 

Lacet  point,  213. 

La  Chaise  Dieu,  116. 

Lacis,  12,  19,  144. 

Lacquey's  livery  in  the  eighteenth  century,  40. 

Lady's  Album  of  Fancy  Work,  103. 

Lagetta,  174,  175. 

Lamballe,  Princess  de,  135. 

Lapel,  213. 

Lappet,  213. 

Lavendon,  132. 

Lavoro  a  groppi,  20,  175. 


Lavoro  a  maglia,  175. 

Lawn,  213. 

Layard,  Lady,  on  cut-work,  142. 

Laybach,  51,   115. 

Layette  presented  by  the  Papal  Nuncio  to  the 

Dauphin  of  France,  61. 
Lead  works,  213. 
Leaves  divided,  213. 
Leghorn  straw-plaiting,  199. 
Legs,  213. 
Leipsic,  160. 

Leonardo  da  Vinci,  portrait  by,  114. 
Le  Puy  laces,  49,  156,  175. 

an  ancient  factory,  21  . 

Jesuit  Father's  efforts  on  behalf  of,  175. 

Oldest  in  France,  175. 
Lerd  works,  213. 
Le  Sage's  play  for  puppets,  80. 
Leve,  the,  187. 
Liege  lace,  175. 
Lierre,  155. 

Ligneres-la-Doucelle,  113. 
Lille  fond  claire,  88. 
Lille  lace,  176. 

Antwerp,  in. 

Black,  176. 

Bobbin-made,  176. 

English,  184. 

Patterns  of,  176. 

Summer  laces,  43. 
Lime  as  a  bleach,  130. 
Limerick  lace,  52,  177. 

Applique,  178. 

Origin  of,   177. 

Run,   178. 

Tambour,  178. 
Limoges  lace,   178. 
Lind,  Jenny,  portrait  of,  52. 
Line,  definition  of,  213. 
Linen  garment  ornamented  with  drawn  work, 

with  Kufic  inscription,  8. 
Lingerie,  213. 
Linum  usitatissimum,  210. 
Lisbon  lace,   192. 
Literature  of  Lace,  94,  98. 
Livery  in  the  eighteenth  century,  40. 
Lobster  claws  for  polishing,  207. 
Locle  Connet,  51 . 
Loire,  the,   156. 
Loire,  Haute,   156,   175. 
London  Exhibition  Reports,  98,   103. 
L'Onray,  28,   156,   187. 
Lorraine  lace,   178. 

Mignonette,  182. 


INDEX. 


235 


Loudun,  28,  156. 
Lough  ton,   132. 

Louis  VIII.,  sumptuary  laws  of,  8. 
Louis  XL,  sumptuary  laws  of,  9. 
Louis  XIII.,  27,   138,   156. 
Louis  XIV.,   ii,  28,  29,  80,  107,  112,   113,  117, 
119,   159,   165,   173,   187,   120,  202. 

and  the  Dauphin,  portraits  of,  61. 

Sumptuary  laws  of,   n. 
Louis  XV.,  26,   108,   113,   119,   153. 

Fans,  67. 
Louis  XVI.,  45,   no,   190. 

Bust  of,  37. 

Ruffles  owned  by,  40.         t 
Louis  le  D6bonnaire,  sumptuary  laws  of,  8. 
Louise   Adelaide  of   Orleans,    portrait   of,   at 

Versailles,  50. 

Louise  of  Lorraine,  fan  presented  to,  66. 
Louvain,   119. 

Picture  by  Quentin  Matsys  at,   118. 

Portrait  at,   155. 

Lozenge  pattern  the  most  ancient,  4. 
Lucca  gold  lace,   116. 
Lucerne  peasant  laces,  73. 
"Lucretia,"  by  Bassano,   13. 
Luignes,  Mme.  de,  38. 
Luneville  lace,   178. 
Luton,  straw-plaiting  at,  200. 
Luzarches,   135. 
Lyme  Regis  lace,   178. 

Decline  of  the  industry,   178. 
Lyons,   162,   178,   197. 
Lys,  River,  rouissage  in,   128. 

M 

Maceio  lace,  125,  126. 

Machine-made  ground  laces,  mending,  85. 

Lace,  judging,  88. 

Net,  effect  of,  on  Honiton  laces,  52. 

Net,    run     and     embroidered     with    flax 
thread,  46. 

Thread  net,  introduction  of,  47. 
Macrame  lace,  179. 

Book  on,  103. 

Genoese,  157,  158. 

Origin  of  name,  179. 

Revival  of,  179. 
Madagascar  lace,  179. 
Madeira  laces,  51,  179. 
Madras  lace,  180. 
Madrid,  162. 

Maintenon,  Madame  de,  29 
Maize  pattern  blonde,  121. 
Malines,  151. 


Malines  lace  (181)  is  indexed  under  Mechlin 

lace. 

Malmesbury,  Countess  of,  portrait  of,  53 
Maltese  lace,  180. 
Black  silk,  119. 
Imitations  of,  180. 
Plaited,  186. 
Manchette,  213. 
Manillese  lace,  180. 

Aloe,  no. 
Manteau,  213. 
Mantilla  lace,  180. 

Mantilla,  portrait  of  Spanish  lady  in,  38. 
Mantillas  in  the  eighteenth  century,  42. 

Sacredness  of,   181. 
Mantle,  213. 
Manuscripts,       ancient,      their      bearing     on 

lace,  4. 

Manx  lace,  172. 
Marcello,  Comtesse,  134 
Margherita,  Queen  of  Italy,  57,   133. 
Margherita  lace,   181. 
Margherite,   ' '  lace  "  a  la  Reine,  49. 
Marie  Antoinette,  135,  214. 
Bust  of,  37. 
Fall  of,  45. 
Lace  worn  by,   n. 
Marie  de'  Medicis,  25,  156,   157. 
Marie  Louise,  108. 

Lace  made  for,  46,  49. 
Marie  Stuart,  inventory  of,   190. 
Marie  Therese,   119. 
Marionettes,  80. 

Market  days,  lace  bartered  on,  77. 
Marlborough,  Wilts,   149. 
Marlow,  Great,  petition  from,  130. 
Married  or  single  state  indicated  by  arrange- 

•ment  of  hair,  71. 
Married  women's  fans,  64. 
Marriott,  Wm.,  prize  awarded  to,  131. 
Marsh  Gibbon,   132. 
Mary,  Queen  of   Scots,  17. 

Portrait  of,  21. 
Mary  Ii.,  34. 

Lace  bill  of,  40. 
Mat,  213. 
Math,  213. 

Matsys,  Quentin,  picture  by,   118. 
May,  Princess,  Bucks  lace  ordered  by,   132. 
Mazarin,  laces  purchased  by,  28. 
Mechlin  lace,   181. 

Circular  ground,  212. 
Cost  of.  181. 
Decline  of,  118. 


236 


INDEX. 


Mechlin  lace — continued. 

Early  examples  of,   181. 

Meshes  of,  182. 

Napoleon's  opinion  of,   182. 

CEil  de  Perdrix,  214. 

"Queen  of  laces,"   124. 

Summer  lace,  43. 
Mediaeval  guipure,  182. 
Mediaeval  lace,  12,  18. 

Anecdotal  history  of,   12. 

Designs,  90. 

Picture  of  the  times,  12. 

Venice  set  the  fashions,  205. 
Medicis  collar,   15,  25,  27,  32. 

Favourite  lace  of  the,  20. 

Influence  on  French  laces,  156. 

Points,  187,  205. 
Medicis,  Catherine  de',  17,  24,  97. 

Portrait  of,   15. 
Medicis,  Marie  de',  25. 
Mending  lace,  84. 
Menin  lace,   182,  203. 
Meric,   135. 

Merletti  a  piombini,  examples  of,   125. 
Merli  (Antonio),  patterns  by,   103. 
Mermaid's  lace,   182. 
Meshes,  214. 
Michaud,  Code,  27. 

Middle   Ages,    fashions  set  by  Venice  in  the, 
204. 

Kinds  of  lace  made  in,   18. 

Picture  of  the  times,   12. 
Middlesex,   153. 
Midland  Counties  Loan  Exhibition,  catalogue 

of,   104. 

Mignerak's  book  on  lace,  35. 
Mignonette  lace,   182. 
Milanese  lace,  158. 

Greek,   163. 

Point,   182. 

Milan,   Sforza,  Viconti  of,   13. 
Milton  Keynes,   132. 
Minerva,  Zierlich-webende,   103. 
Minifie,  Mrs.,  of  Honiton,  34. 
Mirecourt  lace,  156,  182. 
Mittens,  214. 
Mixed  lace,  183. 

Mob  cap  pinned  under  the  chin,  44. 
Modelbiicher,  104. 
"  Modern  "  and  ."  old  "  lace,  definition  of  the 

terms,  47. 

Modern  point  lace,   183. 
Modes,  213,  214. 
Monaghan,  134,  140,  171. 


Monasteries,  work  in,  94. 

Suppression  of  English,   12. 
Monmouth's  Rebellion   and   Devonshire   lace, 

146. 

Monreale,  Capucini  Convent  at,  62. 
Montmorency,   178. 
Montulay,  French  draughtsman,   114. 
Moorish  lace,   183. 

Morangis,  M.  de,  Prefect  of  Alencon,  35. 
Morocco  lace,   183. 
Morosini,  Doge  Francesco,  205. 
Mosaic  lace,  127. 

Modern,  43. 
Moscow,   195. 
Mould  attacking  lace,  82. 
Moulsoe,   132. 

Mourning  Avear  in  the  eighteenth  century,  43. 
Mula's  (Cecelia  de)  dowry,  142. 
Mull  muslin,  214. 
Mummies,  Capuchin,  62. 
Mummy  wrappings,  62. 

Adorned  with  drawn-work,  etc.,  4. 
Munich  caterpillar  lace,   135. 
Murat,   116. 
Music,    lace-makers'  (chansons   a   toile),   100, 

208. 

Muslin,  embroidered,  47. 
Muslin,  Mull,  214. 
Mzensk,  196. 

N 

Nancy,  broderie  de,  150. 
Nankin  silk  for  Bayeux  lace,  116. 

for  Caen  lace,  120. 

Nantes,    revocation   of   the   Edict   of,   and  its 
effects,  23,  29,  108,  145,  152,  159,  201. 
Napery,  214. 
Naples,  163. 
Napoleon  I.,  11,  108,  129,  158,  181. 

Efforts  of,  on  behalf  of  the  lace  industry, 
46. 

Portrait  of,  48. 
Napoleon  III.,  38. 

Costly  Alen9on  purchased  by,  109. 
Napoleonic  cypher,  46,  49. 
Neapolitan  Greek  lace,  163. 
Needle,  214. 
Needle-point,  definition  of,  183,  189. 

Ground,  88. 

Guipure,  15. 

Italy  the  home  of,  14,  16. 

Judging,  88. 

Open  cross  bar,  214. 

Point  none,  216. 


INDEX. 


237 


Needle-point — continued. 

Punto  a  feston,  216. 

Restoring,  84,  85,  86. 

Toile,  88. 

Needles  for  straw-plaiting,  200. 
Neh  und  Strickbuch,  Neu,  104. 
Nelson,  Lady,  Hamburg  lace  purchased  for, 

1 60. 

"  Nenia,"  chanson  a  toile,  by  Randegger,  100. 
Nero's  head-covering  of  gold  threads,  161. 
Net,  bobbin-made,  first  appearance  of,  47. 
Net  ground,  judging,  88. 
Net,  machine-made,  introduction  of,  47. 
Net-making  machine,  Heathcoat's,   170. 
Netting  book,  104. 
Network,  ancient,  the  forerunner  of  the  modern 

lace  ground,  2. 
Neufchatel,  201. 
Newport  Pagnell,  131. 
New  Ross,   171,   172,  206. 
Newton  Blossomville,   132. 
Nimeguen,  treaty  of,  23,   114. 
Nineteenth  century,  anecdotal  history  of  lace 
in  the,  46. 

Bed  furniture,  46,  47. 

Devonia  lace,  52. 

Devonshire  lace,  52. 

English  laces,  47,  52. 

French  laces,  47,  49. 

German  laces,   15. 

Honiton  laces,  52. 

Irish  laces,  52. 

Italian  laces,  49. 

Low  prices  for  lace  in,  47. 

Madeira  laces,  51. 

Only  kind  of  lace  invented  during,  190. 

Petit  motif,  52. 

Picture  of  the  times,  46. 

Point  lace,  190. 

Polychrome  lace,   190. 

Portuguese  laces,  51. 

Reaction  in  favour  of  old  lace,  47. 

Russian  laces,  51. 

Smuggling,  78. 

Spanish  laces,  51. 

Swedish  laces,  51. 

Swiss  laces,  51. 

Venetian  laces,  205. 
Nord,  Department  du,  202. 
Normandy  laces,   149,  83. 

Bobbin,  183. 

Mignonette,  182. 

Peasant,  69,   184, 

Trolly,  202, 


Northamptonshire  laces,   184. 

English  Lille,   154. 

Flemish  influence,   184. 

French  ground,   184. 

Point  ground,  introduction  of,  184. 

Valenciennes,  184. 

Yak,   206. 

Notre,  Andre  le,  portrait  of,  30. 
Notre  Dame  (Paris)  laces,  56. 
Nottingham  lace,  patterns  for,   104. 

Tambour,  201. 
Novgorod,   195. 

Nuns'  work,  58,  59,  94,  140,  150,  179,  184,  198, 
200. 

Anglo-Saxon,   6. 

Ordered  by  Innocent  IV.,   17. 

Varieties  of,  184. 
Nuremberg,  159,  160. 
Nuremberg  Museum,  catalogue  of,  104. 

O 

CEil  de  perdrix,   113,  210,  214. 
Officers'  epaulettes,   133. 
-  Old  lace,  definition  of,  47,  185. 

Reaction  in  favour  of,  48. 
Olney,   131,   132. 
Ongania,    F.,    reproductions    and    translations 

by,  97,  98,   104,   105. 
Oorijzers,  72. 
Open  braid,  214. 
Open  cross  bar,  208,  214. 
Open  dots,  214. 
Open  fibre,  214. 
Open  lace,   185. 
Open  work,  214. 
Opus,  214. 
Opus  anglicanum,   185. 

Ordered  by  Innocent  IV.,   17. 
Opus  araneum,  137,  144,   185. 
Opus  filatorium,   137. 
Opus  tiratum,   150. 
Oriental  origin  of  lace,  supposed,  3. 
Origin   ^  lace,  3. 

Judging,  89. 

Orkney  Islands  straw  for  plaiting,  200. 
Ornamento  delle  belle  et  Virtuose  Donne,  &c., 

104 

Orne,  the,   156. 
Orphreys,  60,  214. 
Orris,  214. 
Orsa  lace,  185. 

Ostaus,  Giovanni,  works  by,  104, 
Ouvrage,  215. 


238 


INDEX. 


Ouvrages  masches,  144. 
Oving,   132. 
Oyah  lace,   185. 


Packmen,  lace  sold  by,  76. 
Pagani,  Matio,  designs  by,   104. 

on  cut-work,   141. 

Paganino,  Alessandro,  work  by,   104. 
Pall,  215. 

Palliser,  Mrs.   Bury,   quoted,  18,  79,   131,  153, 
199. 

Works  by,   104. 

Pandore,  la  grande  and  la  petite,  80. 
Paraguayan  aloe  lace,   no. 
Parament,  214. 
Parchment  lace,  163. 

Used  as  fan-trimming,  65. 
Parement,  215. 
Parfilage,  214. 
Paris,   162,  163,   178,   181,   182. 

Exhibition  (1851),  109. 

Exhibition  reports,  98,   104. 

Fashion  puppets  from,  79,  80. 

Oratoire  inventory,  58. 

Peasant  laces  in  the  neighbourhood  of,  75. 

Point,   187. 

Parrasoli,  patterns  by,   125. 
Parure,  215. 

Passemens,  Revote  de,  97. 
Passementerie,  215. 
Passements,   19,   144,   178,  215. 

a  dentelle,  215. 

a  1'aiguille,  215. 

au  fuseaux,  215. 
Paten,  covering  for,  58. 
Patterns,  judging  by,  90. 

Most  ancient,  4. 
Pattern  books,  94,  98,    105. 

Early,   13,   16,  22,  26,  94. 

German,   160. 

Scarcity  of,  97. 

Swiss,  201. 

Paul  Veronese,  painting  by,   i . 
Pays  de  Caux,   149. 
Pearl,  continuous  inner,  208,  209. 
Pearl  edge,  215. 
Pearl,  inner,  212. 
Pearl  tatting,   172. 
Pearlin  or  pearling,  215. 
Pearls,  215. 
Peasant  laces,  69. 

Ariege,  73. 

Baden,  69. 


Peasant  laces—  continued. 

Bayeux,  69. 

Bourgogne,  74. 

Bourgoin,  the,  69. 

Bulgarian,  71. 

Caen  cap,  70. 

Cauchoise,  69. 

Chioggia,  70. 

Dalecarlian,  75. 

Dalmatian,  74. 

Danish,  72. 

Dieppe,  72. 

Dutch,  72. 

French,  69,  71,  72. 

German,  71,  75. 

Greek,  75. 

Havre,  70. 

He  de  France,  70. 

Italian,  73. 

Jutland,  72. 

Lucerne,  73. 

Normandy,  69,  184. 

Paris  and  its  environs,  75. 

Portuguese,  72. 

Roman  district,  174. 

Rouen  caps,  74. 

Russian,  74. 

Silesian,  75. 

Southern  French,  71. 

Spanish,  72. 

Stiffened  lace  as  a  sunshade,  75. 

Swedish,  72,  75. 

Swiss,  70,  71,  201. 

Utrecht,  69. 

Women  prided  themselves  on  the  fineness 
of  their  lappets,  69. 

Yvetot,  69. 

Peasant  jewellery,  73,  74. 
Pedlars,  lace  sold  by,  76. 
Pelestrina  lace,  42,  185. 

Revival  of,  185. 
Peniche  lace,  191,  192. 
Pepys'  Diary  quoted,  33. 
Period  when  lace  was  made,  judging,  89. 
Persian  drawn-work,  186. 
Peter  the  Great,  195. 
Petit  motif,  52,  186. 
Petit  poussin,  184. 

Philip  Augustus,  sumptuary  laws  of,  8. 
Philippine  Islands  lace,  180. 

Aloe  lace,   no. 

Picchetti,  Marie,  a  macram£  worker,   179. 
Picklemann,  Jungfrau,   160. 
Picots,  214,  215. 


INDEX. 


239 


Pictures   as  an   aid  in    tracing  the   history  of 

lace,  3. 

Pies,  smuggling  in,  79. 
Pillows,  dressed,  209,  217. 
Pillow  lace,  definition  of,  3,  186. 
Pillow,  round,  217. 
Pins,  215. 

Pins,  substitutes  for,  125. 
Pin  work,  215. 
Pius  VII.,  portrait  of,  61. 
Pizzo,  215. 
Plain  edge,  215,  216. 
Plaited  lace,   186. 
Cluny,   186. 
Point  d'Espagne,  186. 
Yak,  186. 

Plastron  made  of  floral  scraps,  82. 
Plis,  295. 
Ply,  215. 

Point,  definition  of,  215. 
Point  a  carreaux,  186. 
Point  a  1'aiguille,  127,  186. 

Earliest,  129. 
Point  conte',  119,  44. 
Point  coup6,  19,  141. 

Point   d'AIencon,    Point   d'Argentan,  &c.,   are 
indexed  under  Alen9on,  Argentan,  &c. 
Point  d'Angleterre,  54,  127,  147,  153,  154. 
a  brides,  154. 
Description  of,  154. 
First  appearance  of,  35. 
Lappet  of,  153. 
Smuggling  of,  154. 
Point  de  champ,  187. 
Point  de  chant,  216. 
Point  de  France,  26,  113,  187.       See    French 

laces. 

Cost  of,  187. 
Evolution  of,   187. 
Falling  collar  of,  29. 
Ruffles  and  cravat  of,  30. 
Venetian  influence,  28. 
Point  de  gaze,  43,  115,   127. 
Austrian,   115. 
Eighteenth  century,  43. 
Point  de  Genes,  157. 
Point  de  genes  frise,  22. 
Point  de  Lille,  216. 
Point  de  Medicis,  187,  205. 
Point  de  Moscow,  195. 
Point  de  Paris,  187,  216. 
Point  de  raccroc,  129,  216. 
Point  d'Espagne,  198. 
Early,  22. 


Point  de  tricot,  140. 
Point  de  Tulle,  182. 
Point  de  Turque,  185. 
Point  de  Venise,  26. 

Gros,  reproduction  of,  183. 
Point  double,  187. 
Point  Duchesse,  43. 
Point  du  Dieppe,  184. 
Point  du  Havre,  149,  184. 
Point  gaze,  43.  115,  127. 
Austrian,  115. 
Eighteenth  century,  43. 
Point  Gotico,  15. 
Collar  of,   19. 
Point,  gras,  211. 
Point  Jesuit,  172. 
Point  lace,  definition  of,  188. 
Flower  in  relief,   189. 
Honeycomb  grounds,  189. 
Italian,  189. 
Modern,  183. 
Patterns  of,  189. 
Relief  in,  189. 
Silk  for,  189. 
Six-sided  mesh,  189. 
Point,  lacet,  213. 
Point  neige,  189. 
Cuff  of,  188. 
Point  none,  2i6. 
Point  pecheur,  190. 
Point  plat,  127,  216. 

Applique,  127. 
Point  tresse,  190. 
Decline  of,  190. 
Elephant's-tail  hair,  190. 
Poking  stick,  216. 
Polychrome,  52,  190. 
Pombal,     Marquis     de,     Portuguese     factory 

founded  by,  192. 
Pont  1'Eveque,  149. 
Pope,  appeal  to,  in  1437,  10. 

in  Argentan  alb,  portrait  of,  59. 
Pope's  point,  191. 
Poppy  and  bryony  design,  168. 
Portraits,  earliest,  showing  lace,  13. 
Portuguese  laces,  191. 

Nineteenth  century,  51. 
Peasant  laces,  72. 
Peniche,  192. 
Varieties  of,   192. 
Portuguese  sumptuary  laws,  192. 
Postmen,  lace,  77. 
Pot  pattern,  in. 
Potsdam,  160. 


240 


INDEX. 


Potten  kant,  in. 

Potter,  Amy,  and  burial  clothes,  62. 
Pottery,  lozenge  pattern  on,  5. 
Poupa  di  Franza,  la,  81. 
Poupees,  79,  80. 

Pourbus,  Francesco,  portrait  by,  19. 
Poussin  design,  149. 
Pricked,  216. 
Pricked  lace,  134. 
Pricker,  216. 

Princess  Royal,  wedding  dress  of,   170. 
Prison-made  laces,  49,   119. 
Profit  on  lace-making,  i. 
Protector,  the,  33. 
Publications  on  lace,  94,  98. 
Punti  del  dodisi  fusi,  14. 
Punti  di  Burano,  133,  192. 
Punto  a  feston,  216. 
Punto  a  groppo,  173,  174,  179. 
Punto  applicato,  18. 
Punto  Gotico,  192. 
Punto  in  aria,  31,  192. 
Punto  ricamato  a  maglia,  144. 
Punto  tagliato,  140. 
a  fogliami,  205. 
Punto  tirato,  150. 
Puppets,  fashion,  79,  80. 
Puritans'  rule,  effects  of,  33,  61,  126,  167. 
Purl  edge,  215. 
Purlings,  152,  193,  216. 
Purls,  193,  215,  216. 
Puy  de  Dome,  156. 
Puy  laces  (175)  are  indexed  under  Le  Puy. 


Queen  (the)  Lace  Book,  103. 
Quillings,  216. 
Quintain,  140,  216. 


Rabuna,  5. 

Raccroc  stitch,  129,  216. 

Ragged  lace,  treatment  of,  82. 

Ragusa  lace,  193. 

Raised  flowers,  216,  217. 

Honiton,  170. 

Raised  point  de  Venise,  189. 
Raised  rose  crochet,  140. 
Raised  work,  216. 
Randegger,   Signor  G.  A.,  ballade  a  toile  by, 

100. 

Rapolla,  Genoa,   157. 
Rattwik  lace,   193. 
Ravellings,  215,  217, 


Rechami,  De,  embroidery  patterns  by,  104. 
Reformation,  effects  of,  60,  6r,  167. 
Regency  point  lace,   152,  193. 
"Reglement  pour  les  superfluites  des  habits" 

(1613),  25. 
Relief,    flowers,    &c.,   in,    140,    170,    189,    216, 

217. 

Rembrandt,  portraits  by,  32,  65. 
Renaissance  lace,  finest  period  of,  n. 
Renaissance  patterns,  91. 
Ressau,  144. 

Definition  of,  217. 
Grounds,  212. 

Net  ground,  hexagonal,  212. 
Rosace,  113,  217. 
Restoration,  the,  33. 
Restoring  lace,  84. 
Reticella,  13,  20,   162,   194. 

Designs  for,  94,  96,  194. 

Reveille,  the,  in  the  eighteenth  century,  38. 
Revolution,    French    (1792-3),    effects    of,    44, 
108,  114,   116,  129,  135,  149,  156,  203. 
"  Revote  des  Passemens,"  97. 
Rezel,  144,  217. 
Rezeuil,  144,  218. 

Rezzonico,  Pope  (Clement  XIII ),  57. 
Rheims,  28,  156,  178. 
Rhodes  lace,  194. 
Riazan,  196. 
Ricamo,  5. 

a  reticella,  194. 

Richard  III.,  laces  worn  at  coronation  of,  203. 
Richelieu,  114,  156. 
Riego    de    la    Brancharcliere,    Mile.,    Netting 

Book  by,  104. 
Ringkjobing  "topper,"  72. 
Ripon  lace,  194. 
Riviera,  179. 
Robing,  217. 
Rococo  designs,  91. 

Rodge,  James,  of  Honiton,  34,  146,  154. 
Rohan,  Catherine  de,  135. 
Rohan  family,  Archbishops  of  Strasburg,  59. 
Roman  cemetery  in  Egypt,  lace  from,  2. 
Roman     Church,     vestments     of,     56.         See 

Ecclesiastical  lace. 
Roman  gold-thread  work,  161. 
Roman-Greek  lace,  163. 
Roman-Greek  tombs,  netting  in,  4. 
Roman  lace,  162. 

Peasants',  174. 

Romana,  Lucretia,  designs  by,  104. 
Rond  point,  195. 
Rosaline  point  for  fans,  66. 


INDEX. 


241 


Rose  point,  23,  189. 

Bell-shaped  sleeves,  55. 
Roslin,  portrait  by,  41. 
Ross,  New,  171,  172,  206. 
Rouen  children's  lace-trimmed  caps,  71. 
Rouen  peasants'  lace-trimmed  caps,  74. 
Rouissage,  217. 
Round  pillow,  217. 
Royal   family,  English,   Honiton   lace  ordered 

for,  170. 

Royal  robes,  networks  on  ancient,  4. 
Rubens,  portraits  by,  32. 
Ruche,  217. 
Rucroc,  129,  217. 
Ruff,  217. 

Invention  of,  156. 

Mediaeval,  15. 

Poldng-stick  for,  216. 

Replaced  by  the  falling  collar,  26. 

Seventeenth  century,  23,  24. 

Trimmed  with  guipure,  21. 

Yellow,  prohibited  in  church,  32. 
Ruffenberg,  Baron,  memoirs  of,   155. 
Ruffles,  217. 

Eighteenth  century,  39. 

Servants',  40. 

Weeping,  41. 
Ruffs,  mediaeval,  17. 
Run  Limerick  lace,   178. 
Runners,  217. 
Russian  lace,  195. 

a  brides  picotces,  195. 

Book  on,  105. 

Braid  laces,  195. 

Coarseness  of,  196. 

Coloured  strips  in,  195. 

Duchess      of     Coburg's     present     of,     to 
South  Kensington  Museum,  195. 

Gold,  62. 

Needle-point,  195. 

Nineteenth  century,  51. 

Old,  195. 

Originality  of,  196. 

Peasant  dress,  74. 

Seats  of  the  industry,   195,   196. 

Tape  laces,  195. 


St.  Andre,  M.  de,  30. 
St.  Annaberg,   16. 

St.  Bartholomew,  massacre  of,  201. 
St.    Bridget,    introduction    of    Swedish    laces 
attributed  to,  200. 


St.  Cuthbert's  coffin  in  Durham  Cathedral,  5, 

18. 

St.  Denis,  178. 

St.  Dunstan,  patterns  designed  by,  7,  94. 
St.  Etienne,  178. 

St.  Francois   Regis,  the   patron  saint  of  lace- 
makers,  21. 

St.  Gallen  peasant  laces,  71. 
St.  Maximien,  135. 
St.  Michel  laces,  178. 
St.  Nicholas  flax,  128. 
St.  Peter's,  Louvain,  portrait  at,  155. 
Sainte  Croix,  Dr.  Le   Roy  de,  on  Mrs.  Hail- 
stone's lace,  104. 
Sam  cloths,  97,  217. 
Samplers,  97,  217,  218. 
Sandford,  Great,  132. 
Santa  Margherita,  Genoa,   157. 
Saracenic  drawn  and  embroidered  linen,  9. 

Drawn  linen,  the  earliest  open-work,  7. 

Drawn  linen  work,  5. 

Drawn-work  with  Kufic  inscription,  8. 

Introduction  of  Venetian  lace,  203. 
Sarcophagi,  figures  on,  4. 
Satire    mentioning   every   known   lace   in    the 

seventeenth  century,  97. 
Savary  on  Valenciennes  lace,  161. 
Savile,  George,    Marquis   of  Halifax,   portrait 

of,  36. 
Savona,  190. 

Saxony  bobbin  lace,  modern,  159. 
Scalloped    borders,   first   produced   at   Genoa, 

22. 
Scallops  replaced  by  straight  border,  25,  27. 

Shape  of,  at  various  periods,  89. 

Transition  between   pointed   and  straight, 

81. 

Scandinavia,    gold    lace    handicraft    taken    by 
Vikings  to,  5. 

Lace  postmen  in,  77. 
Scandinavian  barrow,  gold  lace  in,  4. 
Scarf,  218. 

Chan'illy  lace,  136. 
Scarpariola,  Cencia,  133. 
Schleswig,  143. 

Schwartzenberg,  John,  pattern-book  by,  160. 
Scotch  crochet,  140. 
Scotch  ell,  209. 
Scotch  lace,  196. 

Bunt  Lace,  196. 

Coarseness  of,  196. 

Duchess  of  Hamilton's  efforts  on   behalf 
of,  196. 

Shetland,  197. 


242 


INDEX. 


Scott,  E.,  on  flowers  in  point  lace,   104. 

Scraps,  joining,  82. 

Scriptural  references,  4. 

Sculpture  as  an  aid  in  tracing   the  history  of 

lace,  3. 

Seaming  lace,  196. 
Seaton,  148. 

Fan  made  at,  67. 
Sedan,  28,  156,  178. 
Seguin,  Joseph,  on  old  laces,   104. 

on  Burano  laces,  133. 

on  point  d'Angleterre. 

on  point  de  Venise,  26. 
Seme,  218. 
Servants'    livery    in    the   eighteenth    century, 

40. 

Setting  sticks,  218. 

Seventeenth  century ,  anecdotal  history  of  lace 
in  the,  23. 

Designs,  90,  91. 

English  laces,  32,   152. 

Fans,  64. 

Finest  lace  made  in,  n. 

Picture  of  the  times,  23. 

Point  lace,  190. 

Profuse  use  of  lace  in,  27. 

Satire  mentioning   every    known  lace,  97. 

Venetian  laces,  204. 
Sewing  on  lace,  without  injuring,  87. 
Sforza,  Beatrix  d'Este,  portrait  of,   14. 
Sforza  family  records,  13,  15,  182. 
Sharpers,  ruffles  used  by,  40. 
Shawls,  Indian,  119. 
Sheahan's  History  of  Bucks,  132. 
Shelves  in  cabinets,  19,  93. 
Sherborne  lace,  196. 
Shetland  lace,   197. 
"  Shirtes,"    fifteenth  century,    Philip    Stubbs 

on,  6. 

Shute,  148.         .   - 
Sibmacher  or    Siebmacher    (Hans   &  Johann), 

works  by,   104. 
Sidmouth,   147,   148. 
Siena  point,  144. 
Silesian  peasant  laces,  75. 
Silk  blonde  laces,   197. 
Silk  laces,  black,   119,   120. 

Polychromo,  190. 
Silver  laces,  132,  161.     See  also  Gold  laces. 

Cyprus,  142. 

Eighteenth  century,  41. 

Transition  from,  to  flax,  7. 
Silver  and   gold   thread   lace,  early  specimen 
of,  22. 


"  Simon   the   Canaanite,"    by    Paul  Veronese, 

59,   179 

Single  or  married  state   indicated  by  arrange- 
ment of  hair,  71. 

Six-sided  mesh  in  point  lace,   189. 
Sixteenth   century,    anecdotal   history    of  lace 
in   the,  13. 

Cut  linen,  6. 

Designs,  90. 

English  laces,  152. 

Fans,  64. 

Pattern  books,  94,  96. 

Picture  of  the  times,   12. 

Point  lace,   190. 

Venetian  laces  in,  205. 
Skull-caps,  metal,  72. 
Sleeves,  rose  point  bell-shaped,  55. 
Sleeve-trimming  of  applique,  nineteenth   cen- 
tury, 53. 
Smock,  218. 
Smuggling,  78,  127,  154,   172,   176,  201. 

Dogs  used  for,  78. 

Eighteenth  century,  44. 
Soap  for  cleaning,  86. 
Songs  sung  by  lace-makers,  17,  96,  100,  208. 

"  Nenia,"  composed  by  Randegger,  100. 
Sophia,  Princess,  32. 

South   Kensington   Museum,  Duchess   of  Co- 
burg's  present  of  Russian  laces  to,  195. 
South  Sea  Bubble,  period  of,  41. 
Spacing  lace,  196. 
Spain  and  point  lace-making,  189. 
Spanish  guipure,  198. 

Spanish   laces,  198.     These  are  fully   indexed 
under  their  respective  headings.  . 

Barcelona,   197. 

Blonde,  197. 

Duty  on,  199. 

Early,  198. 

Ecclesiastical,  199. 

Eighteenth  century,  41,  42. 

Exquisite  quality  of,  199. 

Flemish  influence,  197. 

Funeral  laces,  62. 

Gold  and  silver,  162. 

Greek,  163. 

Jewish  manufacturers,  198. 

Mantilla  laces,  38,  180. 

Nineteenth  century,  51. 

Peasant  laces,  72. 

Point,  eighteenth  century,  41. 

Point  d'Kspagne,   198, 

Reticella,   194. 

Rose  point,  198, 


INDEX. 


2*3 


Spanish  laces — continued. 

Silk  blonde,  197. 

Tape  lace,  201. 

Thick  cordonnet,  198. 

Varieties  of,  199. 

Spanish  mantilla,  portrait  showing,  38. 
Spanish   national  dress  in  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury, 42. 

Special  designs,  orders  for,  77. 
Spider  work,  137,  144. 
Spindle  points,  14. 
Spines,  218. 
Sprig,  218. 

Stafford,  Bishop,  monument  of,  146. 
Star  grounds,  212,  218. 
Starch,  218. 

Stassof,  W.,  on  Russian  laces,  105. 
Steinkirk  cravats,  32,  40. 
Stem  stitch,  219. 
Stephani  lace,  199. 
Stephani,  Princess,  of  Austria,   199. 
Stienbeck's  efforts  on  behalf  of    Danish  lace, 

143- 

Stiffened  lace  as  a  sunshade,  75. 
Stitch,  buttonhole,  207. 

Close,  208. 

Raccroc  or  rucroc,  216. 

Stem,  291. 

Streak,  219. 
Storing  lace,  82,  91. 
Straight-edged  laces,  early,  25,  27. 
Strand  ground,  219. 
Strasburg,  Archbishops  of,  58. 
Straw  braids,  200. 
Straw-plaited  lace,   199. 

Brazilian,  200. 

English,  199. 

French,  200. 

Japanese,  200. 

Leghorn,  199. 

Swiss,  200. 

Tuscan,  199. 

"Straws"  (needles),  200. 
Streak  stitch,  219. 
Stubbs,  Philip,  on  sixteenth  century  "shirtes," 

6. 

Suffolk  lace,  200. 
Sully,  minister  of  Henri  IV.,  25. 
Summer  and  winter  laces,  43. 
Sumptuary  laws,  effects  of,  7,  n,  21,  24,  28, 
32,  98,    107,    117,    157,    161,    175,  192, 
201. 

First  French,  8. 

Venetian,  9,  10. 


Sunshade,  stiffened  lace  as  a,  75. 

Surplice,  the,  57. 

Surplices  worn   by  choristers  at  the   Vatican, 

61. 
Swedish  laces,  200. 

Dalecarlian  lace,  143. 

Gold,  162. 

Holesom,  75,  201. 

Household,  201. 

Nineteenth  century,  51. 

Origin  of,  200. 

Patterns  of,  200. 

Peasant  laces,  72,  75. 

St.  Bridget  and  the  introduction  of,  200.- 

Twisted  thread,  201. 
Swift,   play  composed   by,   for   the  benefit  of 

Irish  weavers,  171. 

Swinburne,   Henry,  on   French  brides'    trous- 
seaux, 38. 
Swiss  laces,  201. 

Mignonette,  182. 

Nineteenth  century,  51. 

Pattern  books,  201. 

Peasant  laces,  70,  71. 
Swiss  straw-plaiting,  200. 
Swiss  sumptuary  laws,  201. 
Syracuse,  Count    of,    on    English    ladies   and 
lace,  48 


Tab,  219. 

Table,  specimen,  for  lace,  90. 

Table-centre  made  from  fragments,  84. 

Tagliato  fogliami,  23. 

Talith,  the,  60. 

Tambour  lace,  201. 

Limerick,   178. 

Tape  guipures,   163,   165,   166. 
Tape  lace,  201 . 

a  brides,  border  of,  165. 

Belgian,   118. 

Italian  bobbin-made,   124. 
Tape  of  twisted  threads,  ancient,  4. 
Targe,  5. 
Tatting  lace,  201. 

Specimen  of,  202. 
Tatting,  pearl,   172. 
Temple,    Earl,    ruffles   presented    to   the  king 

by,   131- 

Terray,  Joseph  Marie,  portrait  of,  41. 
Theban  lace,  3. 
Thread,  hand-made,  89. 
Thirteenth  century,  picture  .of  the  times,   12 

Sumptuary  laws  in,  9 


INDEX. 


Thorns,  219. 

Ties,  219. 

Tiffield,   184. 

Tinnevelli,  4,   171. 

Tinted  lace,  cleaning,  86. 

Tippet  of  black  Chantilly,  52. 

Tippets,  ecclesiastical,   103. 

Titian's  daughter-in-law,  portrait  of,  64. 

Toile,  219. 

Toile  d'araigner,  no. 

Tokens,  lace,  213. 

Tombs  in  Exeter  Cathedral,   146. 

Tombs,   laces,   etc.,    from  ancient,  3-7,  9,  62. 

Tender  lace,  143,  150. 

Torbay,  147. 

Torchon  lace,  202. 

Torjok,   195. 

Totanelli,  portrait  by,  48. 

Touche,  V.,  book  by,   105. 

Toulouse,  sumptuary  law  of,   175. 

Tournay  flax,  128. 

Tours  ribbon  factories,  30. 

Transport  of  lace,  76. 

Travancore,  4,   171. 

Trays  in  cabinets,  93. 

Tray-mat  made  from  fragments,  84. 

Treadwin,  Mrs.,  of  Exeter,  148. 

on  antique  and  Honiton  point,   105. 
Tree  of  Knowledge  pattern,   167. 
Trefoil,  close,  208. 
Treille,  219. 

Treillis  d'Allemagne,   159. 

Trevelyan,    Miss   Audrey,  introduction  of  de- 
signs in  Devonshire  lace  by,  54. 
Trevelyan's      (Mrs.)     encouragement     of    the 

Devonshire  industry,   148. 
Trina  di  lana,   197. 
Trine,  5. 

Trolle  kant,  155,  202. 
Trolly  lace,   130,  202. 

Bobbin-made,  44. 

Bucks,    152. 

Devonshire,  147. 

Trousseaux,      French,      in      the      eighteenth 
century,  38. 

Carnival  lace  for,  134. 
Trovaux'  Brussels  lace  factory  converted  into 

a  hospital,  48. 

Truck  system  of  payment,  78. 
Tulle  galloons,   116. 
Turbans,  smuggling  in,  79. 
Turnhout,   155 
Turque,  point  de,   185. 
Tuscany  straw-plaiting,   199. 


Twisted  threads,  ancient  lace  of,  3. 
Tyrol,  Austrian,  115. 

U 

Unbleached  effect,  renewing,  87. 

Unterwalden  peasant  jewellery,  73. 

Urbani,    G.    M.,    de    Gheltof,    on     Venetian 

laces.  105. 

Utilising  scraps  of   lace,  82. 
Utrecht  peasant  laces,  69. 
Uttmann,  Barbara,  invention  of  lace  wrongly 

attributed  to,  15,   159. 


Valenciennes,  straight  border  first  made  at,  27. 
Valenciennes  lace,  202. 

Alb    presented    to    the    Convent    of    the 
Visitation,  59. 

Ave  Maria,  116. 

Bobbin-made  border,  157. 

Bobbin-made  ground,  88. 

Bobbins,  number  of,  required   for,  204. 

Border  of  French,  204. 

Cordonnet  absent  from,  204. 

Cost  of,  203. 

Dotted  style,  203. 

Dudonne,  M.,  on,   139. 

Early,  203,  204. 

Fausse,  59,  139,  203,  204. 

Modern,  203. 

Natural  patterns,  203. 

Night  wear,  40. 

Origin  of,  202. 

Sayary  on,  161. 

Seats  of  the  industry,  203. 

Seme  style,  203. 

Time  occupied  in  making,  203. 

Vrai,  59,   139,  203. 
Valier,  Dogaressa  Quirini,  205. 
Van  Dyck,  portraits  by,  24,  27. 
Vatican,  lace  of  the,  57. 

Surplices  worn  at  the,  61. 
Vavassore,  Gio.  Andrea,  designs  by,  105. 
Vecellio,    Cesare,  works  by,  95,  96,   105. 
Venetian  fisher-maid,  story  of,   182. 
Venetian  guipure,  162,  204.     See  Greek  point. 
Venetian  laces,  204. 

Book  on,   105. 

Chef  d'oeuvre  of  the  lace  industry,  205. 

Cut-work,   140. 

Greek,  163. 

Gros  point  de  Venise,  189. 

Grounded  Venetian  point,  163. 


INDEX. 


245 


Venetian  laces — continued. 

Hampered  by  legislation,  9. 

in  Western  Europe,  205. 

Margherita,  181. 

Mermaid's  lace,   182. 

Mosaic  lace,   127. 

Origin  of,  204. 

Point,  23,  42,  48. 

Polychromo,  52. 

Punto  in  aria,   192. 

Reproduction  of  gros  point  de  Venise,  183. 

Rose  point,   189. 

Saracen  introduction,  204. 

Schools  for,  205. 

Silk  blonde,  197. 

Varieties  of,  205. 

Venetian  pattern-book,  earliest,   16. 
Venetian  point,  cravat  of,  48. 

Eighteenth  century,  42. 

Specimens  of,  23. 
Venezuelan  lace,  206. 
Venice,  fashion  dolls  at,  81. 

Fashions  set  by,  in  the  Middle  Ages   and 
in  the  seventeenth  century,  24,  205. 

Gold,  204. 

Invention  of  lace,  204. 

Model  of  Doges'  palace  at,  80. 

Verbiest,  Mme.,  portrait  of,  25. 

Veronese,  Paul,  "Simon  the  Canaanite  " 

by.  59,  179. 
Versailles,  116. 
Vestments,  56,  136.      See    Ecclesiastical  lace. 

St.  Cuthbert's,  5. 
Viarmes,  135. 
Victoria,  Queen,  and  Isle  of  Wight  lace,  173. 

Lagetta  dress  presented  to,  174. 

Wedding  veil  of,  167. 
Vierge  design,  149. 
Vikings,    gold    lace    handicraft    taken    by,    to 

Scandinavia,  5. 
Villier-le-Bel,  178. 
Vinciolo,    Federico   di,    designs   and    patterns 

by.  94,  97,  J05,  125,  137,  141,  163. 
Vologda,  196. 
Vrai  and  fausse  Valenciennes,  59,  203. 

W 

Wadstena,  nuns'  work  at,  18,  200. 

Wales,  Princess  of,  wedding  dress   worn   by, 

170. 
Walker,  Charles,  and  Limerick  lace,   177. 


Wallen  peasant  laces,  70. 

Walmegnier,  peasant  head-gear  of,  70. 

Wareham,  gold  lace  found  near,  4. 

War    time,    permission    for   entry    of   fashion 

puppets  during,  80. 
Washington,  George,  portrait   of,  39. 
Waterford,  171,   172,  206. 
Waterloo  incident  in  connection  with  Brussels 

lace,  48. 
Watteau,  fans  painted  by,  66. 

Paintings  by,  32,  61. 
Waxworks  in  Westminster  Abbey,  62. 
Wedding  dress  of  1830,  51. 
Wedding  (bridal)  lace,  38,   126. 
Weeping  ruffles,  41. 
Welsh  "topper,"  72. 
Wendover,  132. 

Westminster  Abbey,  waxworks  in,  62. 
Wheat-pattern  blonde,   121. 
Wheels,  half,  212,  213. 
White  lace,  cleaning,  86. 
Wight  (Isle  of)  lace,   172. 
Wilhelmina,  Queen  of  Holland,  72. 
William  and  Mary,  34. 
William  IV.,  147. 
Wiltshire  laces,  206. 
Winchester,   32. 
Winslow,   132. 
Winter  laces,  43. 
Alencon,    107. 
Wire  ground,  219. 
Wolstrope,  works  of,  94. 
Women,  the  lace  industry  as  an  employment 

for,  55. 

Woodbury,  147. 

Woollen  laces  for  the  burial  of  the 'dead,  62. 
Wulff,   Mr.   Jens,   Knight   of    the    Danebrog. 

77- 


Yak  lace,  206. 

Plaited,   186. 

Yelverton,  Miss  Emily,  portrait  of,  55. 
Youghal  lace,  171,  172,  206. 

Fan,  66. 

Yorkshire  lace,  194. 
Ypres,   151,  155,  181,  203. 
Yvetot  peasant  laces,  69. 


Zante  lace,  163,  206 


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